


Before I knew (I had begun)

by Hyeyu



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Pride and Prejudice Fusion, Drama, Enemies to Lovers, Idol!Soonyoung, M/M, Misunderstandings, Slow Romance, The Author Regrets Nothing, music producer!jihoon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-13
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-24 16:33:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 50,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21780997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hyeyu/pseuds/Hyeyu
Summary: “...Okay, look. I don’t know what your problem with me is, but I’m not in the mood to snipe back and forth with you tonight, sunbaenim. So let’s agree to disagree and save the argument for some other day when I don’t have to worry about my friend.”Woozi’s reflection in the mirrored surface of the door looked quizzical; Soonyoung itched to smack the expression off his face. “You do know producing a track is a lot more complicated than submitting a few lines of a song, right?”“I know you’re a hotshot genius producer, whatever, but you’re notthatspecial, Woozi-sunbaenim. Given enough time and training, anyone can learn to write, produce, mix - hell, even choreograph. But a good personality? That’s a lot harder to cultivate. So between the two of us, I think you have the harder task. Hwaiting, sunbaenim, I’ll be cheering for you.”Soonyoung is an idol of middling popularity, Jihoon is one of South Korea's top music producers, and between the two of them lie enough pride and prejudice to fuel a splendid K-drama.Or, a modern 'Pride & Prejudice' adaptation, Seventeen-style.
Relationships: Choi Seungcheol | S.Coups/Lee Seokmin | DK, Kwon Soonyoung | Hoshi/Lee Jihoon | Woozi
Comments: 54
Kudos: 253





	1. Act One

**Author's Note:**

> 16 October 2019, 21:24 - 22:33
>
>>   
> me: I'm surprised there's no P&P AU 
>> 
>> Enzen: lololol did you actually go looking 
>> 
>> me: if I were a weaker person I'd write it myself  
> But 1) I'd actually have to write 2) I'm not that familiar with P&P
>> 
>> Enzen: I can help you with #2
>> 
>> me: *AGHAST* No, then I'll be left w only 1 reason not to write it 
>> 
>> Enzen: Sound logic  
> but I'll willingly dig up my regency resources if you ever need em, jes saying 
>> 
>> me: FYI doe if I ever cave (NEVER) I'd prolly do modern so your regency soul would scream into the abyss
> 
> Reader, I was a weaker person. So weak, I broke my fanfic-writing drought to write...this.
> 
> This is a self-indulgent adaptation of P&P in a modern South Korean setting; to those familiar with the original novel, I hope you enjoy seeing where the plots and characters match up. This reads fine as a stand-alone though, so you don't have to know P&P to be able to understand this fic!
> 
> Mega shoutout to [Enzen](http://www.wataksampingan.tumblr.com/) who literally Spark-Noted P&P's massive event timeline for my reference, acted as an idea sounding-board at whatever random hour I got inspired during, and _then_ long-sufferingly beta-ed this monster. Seriously, you the real MVP. 
> 
> Seventeen's age order remains the same. Title is from a quote from the original P&P.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of an idol career must be in want of a few things. Success, for one. Career longevity, and a healthy sleeping schedule, another. Flexibility, stamina, a good sense for variety comedy, more private time, the ability to eat without gaining weight...it was an unending list.

Perhaps naturally, somewhere in the middle of this list might be 'a good and long-lasting romantic relationship'. But while it was undoubtedly there, it definitely would not be the first wish to pop into the mind of Kwon Soonyoung, also known mononymously as 'Hoshi' to K-pop consumers.

No, that wish would go to 'a big break', something that would catapult Hoshi from middling, if steady, success into the top-tier of idol fame. The type of fame that led to multiple music awards, endorsement opportunities galore, a steadily excellent income flow and (a healthy level of) social media notoriety. It was a massively complex, if not uncommon, dream - one which would take years of work and a streak of luck - but Soonyoung had always been of an ambitious turn, something that had manifested in him long before he was scouted to join B.Net Entertainment.

As selfish as it sounded, Soonyoung's desire wasn't purely for his own sake. B.Net Entertainment had, at Soonyoung's insistence during their initial negotiations deciding the terms of his contract, been generous in granting him a lot of autonomy regarding his music releases and public image, guiding rather than dictating both. Recently, at his request, they had even allowed him to work directly with one of the company's affiliated music producers, weighing in on the sound mixes of his music and contributing lyrics to his songs. 

It was an unusual move for an entertainment company to allow their talents so much control over their career without considering the risks of such a move, profit-wise. It was even more unusual when one considered that this level of control had been afforded to essentially a newbie in the K-pop system. But Son Hyunwoo, a formerly successful idol back in his heyday, was an unusual CEO. He had sat back during Soonyoung's impassioned pitch of being true to himself, humming a few times at the right places before remarking that, as long as Soonyoung maintained a regular presence on VLIVE, promoted sufficiently during comebacks, and obtained his manager's approval on activities and music releases, he could take some of the reins with regards to his career.

This wasn't even the oddest decision Hyunwoo had made in terms of running his company, a relatively new one, all things considered. B.Net's stable of talents was small, yet curiously eclectic across the music spectrum. On one end was Hoshi and Dokyeom, mainstream K-pop idols in every sense of the word. On the other was Wonwoo, or MR.Beanie, decidedly indie in his chillwave releases. Seungkwan and Mingyu both fell somewhere in the middle and not on the spectrum at all, the former best known for his variety hosting and entertainment skills, while the latter was slowly starting to show an interest in acting over rapping.

Perhaps one might say that B.Net Entertainment was proof ex-idols did not have the business smarts to properly manage an entertainment company. However, Hyunwoo had been placid in the face of criticism when he had been an active idol, and he was placid as a CEO now. And so the B.Net idols continued on their various paths to success, each with decidedly different goals and contract terms.

Thus, there existed a self-inflicted pressure within Soonyoung to repay Hyunwoo's faith in him with lucrative profits. His manager, Kihyun, laughed whenever Soonyoung expressed this out loud, shaking his head at what he labeled Hoshi's 'ambitious greed', but the idol was determined. If Momoland could go viral with that one song of theirs out of nowhere, Soonyoung too could strike it big if he just hit on the right combination of song, circumstances and luck. And once he got there, he was pretty sure he would be able to ride that wave into a solidly productive career.

This goal was, of course, a work constantly in progress. For one, despite the control he had gotten in his contract, Soonyoung was not quite a fully self-producing idol. He could hold a note, but his strengths were primarily as a dancer, not a musician. So, while he could proudly lay claim to all the choreographies he performed, the music Hoshi released largely relied on Wen Junhui, the music producer in charge of most of Hoshi's discography - Soonyoung's contribution was mostly limited to vetoing certain sounds or song themes. Still, he had been recently experimenting with crafting lyrics and giving ideas for melody lines, with moderate success. His most recent release - 'Hurricane', with its lyrics solely written by Soonyoung - performed well on charts, even managing to scoop up an unexpected MBC Show award. As Kihyun had remarked with some surprise, he was making good progress, all things given.

Still, he reflected moodily as he tried not to fidget in his seat at the Seoul Gayo Daesang, mindful of the cameras swinging around, it would be nice if that progress would speed up a little so he could attend these music award shows as an award nominee instead of an seat-warming attendee.

Beside him, Seokmin was clearly not burdened with similar thoughts, megawatt smile wide as he waved both hands in time with the dexterous rap being spat through the sound systems. Dodging a particularly wild flail, Soonyoung snorted in resigned affection at his labelmate. Seokmin had always been enthusiastic, his effervescent energy one of his largest charms as an idol. Still, his present excitement was clearly at an all-time high; unsurprising, given that the performer on stage was Seokmin's, and at least half of South Korea's favorite idol, Choi Seungcheol, best known as 'S.Coups'.

It was hard to begrudge S.Coups his well-deserved success though. For one, the man _was_ talented; the story of him getting scouted through an impromptu rap he freestyled while waiting for a delayed bus was an aspiring idol's Cinderella story. His skills were only amplified in his discography, which boasted releases that weren’t simply good, but _catchy_. Even now, Soonyoung's body was unconsciously bouncing to the beat of the bass line, mouthing along to the lyrics being roared back at S.Coups by hundreds of different voices. As if all that weren’t enough, the idol appeared to be endearingly humble despite his massive success, his bashful boy-next-door persona winning over hearts and wallets effortlessly. 

Of course, Soonyoung thought, as S.Coups pushed dark hair off his forehead, large eyes crinkled to match his pink-tinted grin, looking like S.Coups probably helped a lot in that respect. 

Seokmin eventually settled back into his seat once S.Coups’ stage set drew to an end, chest heaving as if he had been the one performing on stage. “God, how is S.Coups-sunbaenim so _good_?” 

“Careful with that enthusiasm, Seokminnie - your fanboying is showing in front of all these cameras. Do you want another repeat of Jaehyun all over again?”

The pink of exertion darkened to an embarrassed red, Seokmin slapping at his unrepentant friend’s arm as the latter cackled. “Yah, stop bringing that up!”

“Sure, once the internet stops doing so. Do you know Pann actually released a whole article on your ‘awkward friendship’ with a really high-res picture of you two standing beside each other at Inkigayo last year?” Soonyoung waggled his eyebrows unrepentantly. “Well, now you do. Also, your fancafe still discusses whether or not you two are in some kind of bromance. Last I checked, there was also an online counter running with ‘XX days since Dokyeom and NCT’s Jaehyun last met’ somewhere.”

Groaning, Seokmin dropped his head into his hands. “Damn Seungkwan and his need to blow everything up for the sake of variety; why did he have to mention it on-air in the first place, oh my god. Just because I said once - _once_ \- at dinner that Jaehyun-hyung shines brightly - and he _does_ shine really brightly! And he _is_ handsome! It's not my fault that handsome people are intimidating - _oi, stop miming me, Kwon Soonyoung_.”

“So, Dokyeommie,” Soonyoung sang, deftly avoiding Seokmin’s vengeful elbow jabs, “does S.Coups shine as brightly as Jaehyun? Does he intimidate you?”

“You know full well he does,” Seokmin muttered, petulant as he crossed his arms over his chest. Adequately entertained for the moment, Soonyoung gave up on needling his friend, bumping against his arm in companionable apology as he refocused on the emcees on stage once more.

“Really though,” the younger idol commented again later as S.Coup’s ‘Aju NICE’ was announced as the Record of the Year in Digital Release, the elated idol jogging up on stage to receive the small bouquet of flowers and plaque. “How _is_ S.Coups-sunbaenim this good? Did he sell his soul or something to achieve all this?”

"Please, let’s be realistic. S.Coups could put out absolute trash and you'd still sing his praises and buy five copies of his album."

Seokmin stuck his lower lip out. "That's not true! S.Coups would never put out trash. Not while Woozi exists."

“True, that.” It was no secret that a large part of S.Coups' career could be directly attributed to Lee Jihoon, better known as Woozi, one of South Korea’s most famous K-pop producers. Widely hailed as a musical genius, Woozi’s skills ran the gamut from songwriting to mixing and mastering, his Midas touch apparently extending to all three. It was a popular claim that releasing a Woozi-produced track would result in surefire success for the idol performing it, a rumor that only gained steam with every chart win notched onto Woozi’s belt.

Unfortunately, actually getting to work with Woozi was notoriously difficult. Firstly, he almost exclusively produced for PMBL Records’ idols. Even then, he was very discerning of who he worked with, and usually only produced a track or two for these selected few. The only exception was S.Coups, who boasted whole albums of Woozi-created music. It once reached a point where netizens cooked up a controversy accusing S.Coups and Woozi of being in a secret relationship, insisting that Woozi had somehow manipulated PMBL to debut S.Coups before more deserving trainees. The issue had gotten enough traction that PMBL had been forced to release a statement denying the claims, threatening certain parties with lawsuits until the hubbub died down. 

As for S.Coups, he laughed whenever interviewers and show hosts brought up Woozi, remarking that they had been friends long before the idol had ever even thought of entering the K-pop industry. Woozi himself had never addressed the subject, passing on answering those types of questions in the rare interviews he agreed to do.

Whatever the truth was, theirs was clearly a mutually beneficial relationship - ‘Aju NICE’ had been a Woozi track as well, and with the way things were looking, Soonyoung would have been surprised if S.Coups _didn’t_ pick up a bonsang before the night was over.

Still, as with all award shows, the program had a long way to go before it ended. For all the initial resolve Soonyoung had had to learn the varied choreographies from all the performances, the idol eventually tapped his manager's shoulder during a lull in the event flow, asking to use the washroom. 

The toilets were surprisingly empty, and Soonyoung took his time relieving himself, rolling his shoulders to stretch them after sitting upright for so long. As he moved to zip up his pants though, one of the decorative chains clipped on his belt caught on the hook of the tiny slider, remaining stuck despite the tugging Soonyoung did to unhook it. Cursing silently under his breath, the idol moved into a stall to try and unhook the chain from the small metal piece.

He was still struggling with the chain when the sounds from the stadium increased for a few seconds, muting abruptly with the sound of the toilet door clicking shut. Soonyoung immediately recognized S.Coups' distinctive timbre as he talked to the person who must have followed him in, whose brief replies were delivered in a higher, clearer voice. It wasn't until S.Coups laughed and addressed his companion as 'Jihoon-ah' that Soonyoung realized that the second person was Woozi.

The two idly talked about the Seoul Gayo Daesang, apparently in no hurry to leave the washroom after they finished using the urinals. None of this was of any interest to Soonyoung, still caught up with jiggling the accursed belt-chain randomly in hopes that it’d come loose, paying no attention to their meandering conversation. It wasn’t until he had somehow managed to untangle it and zip up properly that S.Coup asked casually,

"By the way, you've heard Hoshi's new song, right? ‘Hurricane’?"

The idol, hand poised on the lock of the door, froze at that, suddenly hyper-invested in the exchange happening outside his toilet stall. It felt vaguely voyeuristic - eavesdropping, whether intentionally planned or not, was still eavesdropping. But, Soonyoung reasoned with himself, how often did one get the opportunity to listen to award-winning seniors discuss your music with no politeness restricting their opinions?

It was with this rationale that Soonyoung remained quiet, a thrilling curiosity running through his veins as he anticipated the answer.

Woozi's reply was a non-committal grunt, almost lost amongst the rustling of clothes and clinking of metal buckles. S.Coups continued, an odd sort of slyness entering his pleasant tone, "I thought it was nice. ‘Very nice’ even, get it?"

“Hilarious.”

“Spoilsport. Anyway, it’s high-energy and passionate, don't you think?"

"Eh." Woozi's voice remained flat. "I expected more."

S.Coup’s amusement seemed amplified in the tiny space, bouncing off the walls. "Oh come on - what more could you want? Flashy dance moves, strong lyrics…you must have hummed it in the shower at least once. That ‘blow the hurricane’ bit gets stuck in your head for ages. _Ages_. "

Woozi sighed, a short, irritable sound. "Sure it would - all simple lyrics do, especially when repeated multiple times. Doesn't necessarily mean they're good."

Whatever S.Coups said to that was drowned out by the sound of multiple taps running and the hot rush of blood in Soonyoung's ears, turning them red in indignation. No matter how one looked at it, it was painfully obvious what Woozi's thoughts were on Soonyoung's best song yet. Worse still, he’d singled out the lyrics. Junhui may have been responsible for the actual sound of the song, but Soonyoung had spent all his free time writing and rewriting the lyrics for weeks, doing his best to capture the defiant pride that Hoshi represented in words.

Honesty was a great policy, but hearing his work being crapped on so bluntly, and by arguably one of the best Kpop producers in the industry, _hurt_.

S.Coups was saying something about the choreography, but Soonyoung would be damned if he stayed hidden while Woozi unjustly disparaged his speciality. Both men looked suitably startled at the squeak of the stall door, Soonyoung stepping out with a poker face even Mingyu would have been proud of. 

"Oh, S.Coups-sunbaenim, Woozi-sunbaenim." It rankled to bow to people insulting his work, but Soonyoung did it with grace, determined to make the other two feel as uncomfortable as possible with his sudden presence.

S.Coups recovered from his surprise faster, his trademark smile wide in his face. "Oh, Hoshi-ssi! Fancy meeting you here."

"I _was_ invited to this event, sunbaenim."

"Oh, I meant in this toilet. Woozi and I were just talking about 'Hurricane' - I thought it was a fantastic song."

"Ah, thank you. That's good to hear, considering I wrote all the lyrics myself." Soonyoung deliberately watched Woozi as he revealed that, but the producer's gaze was as unblinking as his own. He wasn't going to apologize, the idol realized abruptly. He knew Soonyoung had heard everything, but would not retract his words.

Well, so be it - it wasn’t as if Soonyoung had never heard criticism about his releases or performances before, had trained his sensitivity to negative commentary out of himself early (with the help of an ever-patient Seokmin and exasperated Wonwoo). So what if the critic happened to be Woozi? There were still plenty of people who loved 'Hurricane', and who had supported its performances ardently. 

So Soonyoung bowed, as low as politeness demanded for a senior idol and music producer, before making his excuses and leaving the toilet with as unaffected an expression as possible. Kwon fire? Soonyoung was as cool as a cucumber right now.

"What took you so long? And what's with the dark face?" Seokmin's frown was visible, even in the low flashing lights accompanying the performance on stage.

Alright, so maybe his poker face could still use some work. But, as Soonyoung scrounged up a passable smile and the quick assurance that everything was fine, a small part of him still seethed at the unflattering assessment of his single. For all the grace of the exit he had made earlier, Soonyoung was the type of person who held onto grudges a little too well. 

It was this grudge that reduced his clapping to a half-hearted affair when S.Coups was indeed awarded a bonsang, mood soured further by Seokmin's enthusiastic cheering beside him. It was this grudge that made him tune out S.Coups' speech, barely managing not to roll his eyes when the older idol gave a shout-out to Woozi as his long-time producer and friend.

It was this grudge that made him walk a little faster when a familiar voice called out his name.

"Hey, Hoshi-ssi! Hoshi-ssi!"

"Why is S.Coups calling your name?" Seokmin hissed, his confusion slowing the pair down from the rapid pace Soonyoung had set towards the exit. “Hyung?”

"Don't know, don't care. Let's just leave, c’mon - oh my god, _don't turn around_ -"

"Hoshi-ssi, Dokyeom-ssi, hi!" S.Coups caught up with them, still looking damnably fresh and neat in his tuxedo despite the brisk jog he must have done to reach them. Beside Soonyoung, Seokmin's eyes had widened to saucer-like proportions; a discreet kick to his left ankle triggered a jack-in-a-box bow of greeting. "Wow, you guys are leaving pretty early. Not planning on hanging around to mingle a bit?"

"Sorry, sunbaenim, but we’re in a rush; I’ve got practice scheduled right after this, and Dokyeom has…he has practice as well. Our managers are already waiting with our van outside -" 

"Congrats on your wins by the way, sunbaenim!" Dokyeom's voice was a pitch higher than his usual tone, hands clasped together in front of him in a level of politeness that seemed almost too rigid. Soonyoung would have been more amused by this show of nerves, were he not on edge himself. "You really deserve them."

"Ah, thank you! It was the effort of the team supporting me, really." Of course S.Coups would be charmingly gracious, even in receiving praise. "I wish I could say the same of the criticism Hoshi-ssi overheard earlier. Your excellent single didn’t deserve the mean commentary it received, and I wanted to apologize for it. It was all untrue; Woozi was being contrary to mess with me - we do that to each other all the time, just to annoy each other.”

"You don't have to explain Woozi-sunbaenim's opinion to me, S.Coups-sunbaenim." Soonyoung kept his tone cool, balanced neatly between skepticism and agreeableness. "He, and you, are both free to think whatever you want about my music."

"Well, _I_ definitely think your music is great - no really, I do! I just feel kind of bad because it was my fault that caused the whole mess in the first place. Oh - am I keeping you guys? Sorry, I’ll make this quick then - would you mind giving me your Kakao ID? I'm planning a dinner in a couple of weeks to celebrate my wins today, and would really like you to join us. Nothing super-formal; just a small group of friends at my place. I’m thinking gogi-gu-i, and soju and drinks after." 

As much as Soonyoung wanted to refuse the phone S.Coups was holding out to him, offending the popular idol, especially while still on-site at a popular music awards show, could have adverse effects on his career in the long run. The last thing Soonyoung (and Kihyun) needed was a surprise Dispatch article about him picking a fight with S.Coups. So, with some reluctance, Soonyoung tapped his ID into S.Coups's Kakao application, and handed the phone back.

"Sweet.” S.Coups deftly pocketed the phone. “I'll text you the details latest by tomorrow. Sorry again for keeping you. Oh, and of course you’re invited too, Dokyeom-ssi! I’d love to have you there as well. I like Hoshi’s songs, but honestly, yours are on my permanent playlist rotation while I’m at the gym." The grin the idol flashed at Seokmin was sweetly disarming. “I know, it’s a little weird, listening to ballads while working out, but yours are somehow really motivational. It’d be really cool to collab with you one day, with that voice of yours. But look at me delaying you again - you guys better run before your managers throw a fit. Have a safe drive!”

It took several hard tugs on Seokmin's arm to set the pair of them in motion again, scuttling away from where S.Coups was turning to accept more felicitations on his wins from the small crowd converging on him.

"C'mon, we need to get to the carpark before Kihyun-hyung throws a f- _owww_ , what the hell, Minnie!"

"Your Kakao ID is literally in the phone of the person I admire the most in this world, who told me he listens to my warbling while working on those sweet, sweet muscles, _and_ invited me over to his place." Seokmin’s hand retracted from where it pinched Soonyoung. "I needed to be sure this is the correct reality and not one of the fourteen million Dr. Strange saw in Infinity War."

“First of all: _nerd_. Second, why are you pinching _me_ then?”

“Because pinching myself is too painful, duh. Also, you have a _lot_ of explaining to do in the van. Don’t give me that look, hyung; we have a good fifteen minutes on the road, and I intend to find out how the hell you managed to wrangle that kind of invite out of the greatest idol in Seoul if it’s the last thing I do tonight.”

\---

"Hyung?"

"Mmmm?" 

"Would you…" A huff of breath, followed by the rustling of blankets - the tenth time Soonyoung had heard that combination of noises since they both climbed into their respective bunks in their shared bedroom. "Would it be okay if…? I kinda want to…well."

Another indecisive pause, then the eleventh repetition of the sigh-rustling combo. Groaning in exasperation, the brunet rolled over in his comforter burrito so he could peer over the edge of the top bunk and into the lower one, squinting at Seokmin in the semi-darkness. "Out with it."

The younger idol worried at his lip, fists curled loosely in his blankets in the way he always did when trying to decide on something. "Look, I know S.Coups was an ass to you, and you don't want to go to his dinner party thing, but would it be ok…would you mind if I went anyway? I won’t if it really pisses you off, but…” 

_I really like him_ , went unsaid in the silence of the room.

Of course Soonyoung didn't mind in the least. S.Coups was Seokmin's favorite idol after all, had been for years, and Soonyoung hadn't expected him to pass on the invite, even if he himself had zero interest in going. He told Seokmin as much, firmly and vehemently.

"Besides," he added, "the real asshole was actually Woozi, not your man. So, go to that dinner party with my blessing. Just be careful around Woozi, okay? He’ll definitely be there; don’t give him ammo to shit-talk you as well."

"Okay." Seokmin’s exhale was loud in the stillness. "You're really, really sure it's okay with you, right, hyung?"

"Yes, it really, really, _really_ is, silly. Now go to sleep, or else Soojin-noona’s gonna complain even more about your eyebags tomorrow at your musical rehearsal and I’ll get to say I told you so at least a dozen times afterwards." 

\---

"You really, _really_ shouldn't go, Minnie." 

Soonyoung surveyed his friend critically, frowning as Seokmin struggled to pull on his boots at the dormitory’s doorway. Bundled up in several layers of heat wear (several of which were definitely Mingyu’s), Seokmin’s lithe form was barely discernible under the heavy fabrics. His cheeks above the face mask was flushed, his eyes a little too shiny for it to be purely from excitement. If someone were to pull off the tiny rectangle of cotton concealing the bottom half of Seokmin’s face, they would be greeted with a nose swollen red, and unmuffled sniffling. 

Trust Seokmin’s poor luck to be struck with one of those twenty-four hour bugs that had been making its way around Seoul on the one night he was most looking forward to.

“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell him for the past hour,” Mingyu drawled from where he was sprawled on the communal couch, scrolling through Twitter on his phone. “It’s not going to stop him, hyung.”

“Shut up, you traitor,” Soonyoung snapped without any bite. “You let him steal your clothes.”

“Can you honestly blame Seokmin-hyung though?” Seungkwan called from the kitchen. “I mean, how often does one get invited out by your role-model crush? If it were me being invited, I’d even crawl to that party if I had to.”

“Pretty sure Kim Junsu-sunbae’s too old for you, Kwan-ah.”

“Go jump off a cliff, Mingyu-hyung.” 

“You’re still not at a hundred percent yet,” Soonyoung said over Mingyu’s cackling, crossing his arms. “I can hear your phlegm from here, which is disgusting, by the way.”

“Imma lod bedder now!” This retort was weakened by a poorly suppressed cough. “I dook some med’cine, and eben pracdiced doday.”

“Only death stops any of us from going to practice. Are you really sure you still wanna go to that dinner? The chill outside isn’t going to help with your cold. Plus, imagine if you pass S.Coups or his friends your cold. Would you want that on your conscience?

Seokmin wavered, both figuratively and literally. “I won’ dake obb my bace mask den.”

“Then how are you going to woo him with your aristocratically handsome features?”

“Hyung!” Seokmin broke off to cough. “ _Blease_.”

Soonyoung huffed a resigned sigh. “At least make Minhyuk-hyung drive you over.”

“He won’ led me go ib he saw me like dis.”

“Exactly.”

“Soonie-hyunnnng.” Even a stuffy nose couldn’t dampen the plaintiveness of Seokmin’s words. “You know dis kind ob obbortunity won’ come again. I godda go.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know.”

Making a noise of triumph as he finished pulling on his boots, Seokmin squared his shoulders and wobbled to his feet. “I’m going now, don’ waid ub bor me.”

“Fat chance of that happening. Don’t stay too late.” The click of the front door closing was the only reply Soonyoung got. “Why do I even try?”

“Because someone around here has to care,” Seungkwan said promptly, strolling into the living room. “And that’s not me and definitely not Mingyu-hyung. Anyway, want some ramen, hyung? I made extra.”

\---

**S.Coups** [4 unread]

 _12:23 am_ _  
_Hey, it’s Coups  
Would you mind coming over to get Dokyeom? He’s not feeling too good

 _12:24 am_  
He threw up a bit  
I don’t think he should walk back on his own

\---

S.Coups’ apartment was a far cry from the cramped dormitory the B.Net idols shared - it was in a nice building in Gangbuk, without too much foot traffic. Even the elevator buttons were classier, Soonyoung absently noted, trudging out into the well-lit corridor until he was in front of the right door.

The bell had barely finished chiming when the door opened, revealing not S.Coups, but Woozi staring up at him from behind a pair of over-large glasses. The memory of their last conversation instantly popped back into mind, complete with the sourness that still accompanied the experience, but the idol managed to school his unflattering surprise into a more neutral expression.

“Sorry, I’m looking for S.Coups-sunbaenim? He called me to pick up Dokyeom.”

“Come in.” Woozi seemed a little overdressed for a casual dinner, with a smart-looking cardigan pulled over his shirt and his dark hair styled off his forehead. Soonyoung supposed that objectively, it was a good look on the man, even if it added to the intimidating aura Woozi seemed to radiate on a permanent basis. Chiding himself for getting distracted by idle thoughts, Soonyoung wordlessly complied with the producer’s directive, leaving his shoes at the doorway before padding into the spacious residence.

“Soonie-hyung?” Seokmin was a shivering bundle of sweaters and blankets on the two-seater couch, where he was leaning against S.Coups. The surprisingly intimate position would normally have Soonyoung waggling his eyebrows suggestively at his best friend, if he weren't being distracted by how said best friend's voice had deteriorated further into a hoarse rasp. His skin was sticky-hot where Soonyoung’s fingers cupped his cheek, and his eyes wet in the corners. 

He had kept the face mask on, as he said he would, and there was already a fever-reducer pad stuck on his forehead, abating Soonyoung’s worry slightly. “Aigo, grandpa,” he cooed, sliding onto the couch on Seokmin’s other side. “You’re no longer young, you should know better than to make grandma worry like that.”

“Aish, granma, I-” Seokmin broke off into phlegmy coughs, and S.Coups’ arm came up around his shoulders, gently rubbing Seokmin’s back. It was an uncharacteristically comfortable gesture for two fairly new acquaintances, but Soonyoung didn’t allow himself to react to it, opting to instead say,

“Shhh. No skits for a silly grandpa until your voice is back. No recordings, practices or schedules either - Minhyuk-hyung’s going to chew you out royally for this later. Hello, S.Coups-sunbaenim, by the way. Sorry for not greeting you earlier.”

“Don’t worry about it.” S.Coup’s smile was warm, his arm remaining curled around Seokmin casually. “We missed you at dinner; some of us were pretty disappointed at your no-show.”

Soonyoung raised an eyebrow at that. Aside from Seokmin and Woozi, he didn’t know who else had attended the dinner gathering, but he highly doubted any of S.Coups’ friends knew him well enough to note his absence. 

Before he could add voice to his doubt, however, Seokmin coughed once more, diverting both men’s attention back to him.

“I think it should pass pretty quickly,” S.Coups offered once Seokmin had stopped hacking. "I gave Dokyeom some ibuprofen, and a bit of rest should get him back on his feet.”

“Speaking from experience, huh, S.Coups-sunbaenim?"

S.Coups chuckled at the jibe. "‘Coups-hyung’ is fine, Hoshi-ssi. And, uh, I wish I could deny that, but Jihoon and my manager have both had to put up with me being ill multiple times over the years. And I have it on good authority that I’m a _much_ grumpier prat than Dokyeom-ssi."

Woozi grunted from where he was still leaning in the doorway; Soonyoung had almost forgotten that he was there at all. 

"Well, you can't be worse than me, I bet - I’m apparently a pain in the ass when I'm down for the count. Dokyeomie is the best of us all, really; a little whiny, but he’s generally good with taking medicine and sleeping at the right times. Thank you for taking care of him so well.” Soonyoung grinned at Coups, feeling a lot more charitable towards Seokmin’s crush. “And sorry for the trouble; it must have ruined your party.”

“Not at all - it was really just me, Jihoon and some of my 95-liner friends. And at least I know it wasn’t my boring conversation topics that kept Dokyeom so quiet at the beginning of the night.” Seokmin made a sound of protest at that, and Coups went slightly pink, patting the other man with the arm slung around him. "Everyone had mostly left anyway when Dokyeom passed out-”

“He _what?”_

Seokmin whined miserably under the incredulous stare Soonyoung shot him, burying his head further into Coups’ shoulder. It would be excellent fodder to blackmail him with eventually, once Soonyoung had finished railing at him for being an absolute idiot. “To’d you nod d’ tell him.”

“I’m going to rip you a new one once you’re feeling better, Seokminnie,” Soonyoung informed him cheerfully. "Then I’m going to tell all the others so they can do the same. Thanks again for everything, Coups-hyung.”

“Seriously, it’s no big deal. Partially my fault too, anyway, for inviting him over and feeding him oily food.”

“No, it’s definitely this idiot’s fault for coming when he wasn’t feeling well in the first place. Please invite him over again when he's healthier; I promise he's usually much better company at a hundred percent."

“Do you need me to help you carry him down?”

Soonyoung paused in the middle of reaching out for his friend, weighing his options. On one hand, it would be a crying shame to deny Seokmin the one-in-the-lifetime experience of being carried by his ultimate idol. On the other...his eyes slid over to where Woozi was standing, very clearly watching them, and he grimaced internally. “Nah, I can take him, hyung. I do my leg days at the gym and everything. Besides, I wouldn’t want you to catch whatever bug Dokyeomie’s having.”

“Then what about yourself?” Coups sounded a little dubious, his arm still hovering around Seokmin. 

“Trust me, I’m long immune to anything Dokyeom-related. Perks of being his best friend.” Squatting down, the idol braced himself as Coups carefully transferred Seokmin from the slouch against his shoulder onto Soonyoung’s back. It took him a while to straighten up fully, waiting until he was satisfied with the lack of teetering as he locked his arms under Seokmin's legs with a grunt. 

“Wah, grandpa, it’s time to lay off the chips, you’re heavier than the water pails I have to carry up the mountain.”

“You aren’t fat, don’t worry,” Coups assured Seokmin with a chuckle when the sick idol made another sound of protest, and Soonyoung grinned, despite everything.

"Thanks once more, hyung."

"Aish, stop thanking me - it's really nothing. Besides, I can't take all the credit; Jihoon helped get the medicine from the nearby pharmacy."

"Because all the ones in your medical cabinet is expired, idiot."

Coups' laughter diffused the awkwardness the terse reply generated, and Soonyoung bopped his head in Woozi's direction, mindful to not jostle Seokmin too much. "Thank you too then, Woozi-sunbaenim. We'll be going back now."

Coups helped hold his front door open as Soonyoung carefully maneuvered into the corridor, waving at them in farewell. Jihoon, however, unexpectedly followed them out, walking beside Soonyoung and wordlessly pressing the elevator button for the ground floor.

"Thank you."

A small shrug. "Gotta head back to my own place, now that the problem's sorted out."

It was hard to bristle when said ‘problem’ was sleepily clinging to your back, but Soonyoung did an impressive job of it anyway. Whether intentionally or not, Woozi didn’t seem to have noticed, and the ride down was an awkwardly silent one.

Well, it was, at least, until the fifteenth floor.

“You were a guest on the Dingo TV spot the other day, right?”

Soonyoung jerked slightly, caught off-guard by the abrupt comment. “Ah...yes, I was. What about it?”

“The hosts were really pressing you to elaborate on your claim that you self-produced the songs on your album.” Woozi’s side profile was rather nice, hair curling around his ears as he kept his eyes on the elevator doors. “I was just a little surprised at the kind of lip service idols have to give these days, I suppose.”

“...Okay, look. I don’t know what your problem with me is, but I’m not in the mood to snipe back and forth with you tonight, sunbaenim _._ So let’s agree to disagree and save the argument for some other day when I don’t have to worry about my friend.”

Woozi’s reflection in the mirrored surface of the door looked quizzical; Soonyoung itched to smack the expression off his face. “You do know producing a track is a lot more complicated than submitting a few lines of a song, right?”

“I know you’re a hotshot genius producer, whatever, but you’re not _that_ special, Woozi-sunbaenim. Given enough time and training, anyone can learn to write, produce, mix - hell, even choreograph. But a good personality? That’s a lot harder to cultivate. So between the two of us, I think you have the harder task. Hwaiting, sunbaenim, I’ll be cheering for you.”

As if on cue, the tinny chime of the elevator cheerily announced their arrival on the ground floor, and Soonyoung wasted no time striding out of the cramped space towards the car he had borrowed from Wonwoo. He was too irritated by the brief exchange in the lift to spare too much thought towards worrying if he had potentially upset Woozi with his bluntness. Well, if he had accidentally jeopardized any working relationship B.Net might have in the future with PMBL, he’d worry about that when the time came, he reasoned as he started the car and eased back onto the road, a sleeping Seokmin safely buckled in the front seat. Kihyun would be the one mostly dealing with Woozi anyway, not him, and God knew Kihyun could sweet-talk the best of them around.

"...dat wuz mean, hyung."

Oh, Seokmin wasn't asleep. "Well, he was rude first."

"Bud-" Seokmin coughed, and Soonyoung patted his shoulder, eyes glued on the road.

"Don't strain it, Minnie. Just sleep, and dream of all the ways Minhyuk-hyung is gonna kill you tomorrow.”

“I o-reddy wanna die - ‘mbarrassing byself in bront ob -”

“Shhhhh - give yours throat a break; sounds like you’re grating radishes with it. Where are those honey-like vocals now, huh?”

The glare Seokmin shot him lacked intensity, given that it was slightly unfocused. Soonyoung flashed him a thumbs up in reply as the car slowly blended into the late-night traffic, just another vehicle on the road on its way home.

\---

"Hey, my Shooting Stars! Can you all see me clearly?" Soonyoung adjusted his phone a little, almost dropping it as he waved at the front camera with his free hand. The narrow hallway he was standing in didn't necessarily have the best lighting for an impromptu VLIVE video, but it was empty for now, and most importantly, quiet. Soonyoung admired Chen as a senior and an exceptional singer, but his vocal warm-ups leaked through the thin walls between the various waiting rooms too easily, and Soonyoung wasn't keen on having random shrieks, no matter how melodious, feature as the backing track on his stream. "I'm here at MuBank today - oops, that's the top of my head. Lemme just...angle…ah, there we go. Is my new hair-color nice, by the way? I'm back to black now! You guys like it?"

The idol patted his hair gingerly as he shot his camera his trademark grin - messing up the styling his hair had undergone would have brought the wrath of his stylists upon him, and he had to stay in their good graces long enough to finish his comeback performances. As it was, his reflection on the tiny screen informed him the fussing they had done over him this round had paid off handsomely; he preened at his reflection, tugging the collar on his dress jacket straight. 

He didn’t take too long to admire himself, refocusing on the idle rambling that comprised most of his VLIVES. The routine of filming sort-of-one-sided conversations for VLIVEs was old hat by now, with the stiffness that had once characterized his first fumbling attempts a thing of the past. "Ahhhh, my Shooting Stars really are the best, the best! It's going to look amazing on stage later, so watch and cheer me on, okay? Remember to do the fanchants - listening to those really gives me energy! Oh, it seems like today's special guest is getting impatient - can you guess who it is?"

"It's meeeee!" Seokmin perched his head on Soonyoung's shoulder, his features pulled into a pouty expression that quickly gave way to his usual wide smile. "Dokyeom!"

"Dokyeommie is here to support me, right?"

"Actually, I came to cheer for S.Coups-sunbaenim, AOA and Jeonghan-hyung." Laughing, Dokyeom darted out of Soonyoung's jabbing range, the latter gasping in exaggerated outrage. 

"Aish, this friend. After all I've done to teach him how to dance so he doesn’t look like a flailing octopus and he betrays me like this."

"If I remember correctly - and I definitely do - my amazing choreography is mostly due to Casper-hyung.”

“You see?” Soonyoung turned a betrayed look at the camera. “This is the kind of gratefulness I receive for being a nice hyung.”

“Ah, hyung, don't be like that,” Seokmin cooed, poking at Soonyoung’s cheek. “Of course I'm here to support you." 

"Is that Dokyeom's voice I hear?" 

"Jeonghan-hyung!" Both men turned to see a slender idol strolling towards them, platinum blonde hair almost glowing under the corridor lights. His dark performance outfit only highlighted how fair he was, making him look almost impossibly fragile. 

His wit, however, was anything but - sharp and astute, Jeonghan was one of Soonyoung's oldest friends in the industry, despite being from a different company. He was also a lot stronger than his appearance would suggest, only staggering slightly under Seokmin's exuberant hug.

"Hyung, Hoshi's doing a VLIVE right now - say hi to his Shooting Stars!"

"Oh, hello everyone, this is Yoon Jeonghan. I hope you've all been supporting Hoshi well. Say, Dokyeom-ah, I heard an interesting piece of news: you’re supposedly intimidated by handsome men." Jeonghan's smile was deceptively angelic. "Hyung is really disappointed that you can be this comfortable with me - does that mean you don’t find me handsome?"

"Yah, hyung!" 

Soonyoung howled in laughter, barely saving his phone from falling from his grip as Seokmin's cheeks immediately pinked, hands slapping at Jeonghan's arm half-heartedly.

"Ahh, it's ok,” Jeonghan continued, turning the full force of his smile towards Soonyoung’s phone camera. “I'm sure Hoshi's fans think I'm handsome, right?"

"What do you guys say - do you guys think Jeonghan-hyung is handsome?" Soonyoung asked, pretending to squint at the chat furiously flying by in the corner of the screen, "Hmmm, let’s read out some of the comments; 'Hoshi is definitely better-looking', 'Hoshi is more handsome of course', 'Hoshi is the true flower boy-"

"Wow, these dongsaengs and their disrespect." But Jeonghan's voice held no bite in it, long used to this type of banter between them. "Soonyoungie, I can understand, but Dokyeom-ah, whose idiot are you?"

"Jeonghannie's idio~t." Seokmin singsonged the expected answer while pulling a ridiculous face, still curled up around the blonde’s smaller frame. 

"And I am my Shooting Stars’ dance machine." Soonyoung winked at the camera, shooting it a finger-heart. "Oops, it looks like we have to go standby now - take care of yourselves, everyone, and please give 'HIT' a lot of love! See you next stream!"

"We aren't on standby for a good fifteen minutes," Jeonghan remarked as Soonyoung tapped on the button to end his stream. 

"Yeah, but I wanted to catch up with you, hyung - it’s been a while." Seokmin obligingly released Jeonghan into Soonyoung’s hug, a quick squeeze of affection between the two friends. “Lemme just grab a quick selca of us together - gotta update my social media later.”

“Congrats on the new release, by the way, hyung!” Seokmin said once Soonyoung was satisfied with the handful of photos they had all taken. "We managed to watch the 'Fear' music video yesterday!"

"Yeah, I saw the BooSeokSoon's reaction video on your page." Jeonghan's chuckle was silvery. "Remind me how you guys manage to secure CFs with that kind of acting again?"

"Excuse you, our reenactments of the lipstick scene were worthy of awards." Behind Soonyoung, Seokmin dramatically swiped his thumb over his lips, eyes hooded dramatically as he pulled his best dramatic smoulder at its unimpressed originator. "Jokes aside, it was really good, especially the transitions and color scheme. Much dark, very angsty, aesthetics on _point_."

"That’s good to hear - the director wanted a fallen-angel kind of theme, but you know how it is with limited budgets and limited sets. I had to improvise the flower petals and cling wrap part.”

“Whoa, that was improvised? That’s crazy - I really thought WhyG had finally given you a decent budget, considering how luxe everything looked, you included. And there was so much choreo - I was really impressed.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment, coming from the one promoting ‘HIT’ this cycle. I honestly got tired just watching your performance video, Soonyoung-ah."

"Eh, it's really just a digital single, but the beats were so lit, I couldn't help myself when I first heard it in full. It kinda demands energetic moves, you know? It's not going to pick up any awards this cycle anyway and promotions are only for a week - might as well try to go viral with epic choreo instead."

"Mmm, fair enough. S.Coups and Mamamoo both have comebacks this round, right?"

"Yep. So really, no real expectations this round.” Soonyoung side-eyed Seokmin, smirking. “Heck, my own labelmate’s supporting the enemy; I spied Dokyeommie sending votes for S.Coups in the waiting room. I’m pretty sure he texted his mom to vote for S.Coups as well -”

“ _YAH, I VOTED FOR YOU_ -” Seokmin cut off his whine with a huff at the sound of both his seniors guffawing. “See if I ever vote for you again - all my votes are going straight to Jeonghan-hyung now.”

"I accept all and every vote, especially if they come from you, Dokyeom-ah.” Jeonghan’s amusement quieted into a rare sincerity he rarely showed on-screen. “To be honest, I don’t even think about awards anymore - it's good enough to have a comeback at all."

There was nothing Soonyoung could offer in reply to that, save a wordless hug. Despite debuting a year earlier than Soonyoung, Jeonghan's career had been a much rockier journey than his. WhyG may have been lauded as one of the most famous entertainment management companies in the business, but Jeonghan was managed almost as an afterthought, his success never quite climbing past its modest debut level. With minimal scheduled activities per promotional cycle, the idol's releases started dropping in budget before dropping in frequency altogether, the company focused on supporting its more lucrative girl groups. 

It was unspoken knowledge that Jeonghan would leave WhyG once his contract expired, and that he was quietly keeping an ear to the ground for other companies to move to. Only Soonyoung knew of the other’s burgeoning worries though, confessed once with the aid of liquid courage and the loosened tongue of the inebriated. _Who would take on an unpopular idol_ , he had asked rhetorically, half-drooping in the booth they were tucked in, _one who couldn’t even succeed under one of the Big Three?_ _He was pretty, but not handsome enough, nor unique enough. A good singer, but without an outstanding or distinctive vocal color. A passable dancer, but not a brilliant performer. Personable, but lacking the explosion of charisma needed to be entertaining on shows._

Soonyoung had cried that night with Jeonghan, and had never spoken of it again. For all his self-deprecation, Jeonghan had a dignified pride, and to shower assurances on his senior, no matter how true they were, would only wound this pride.

“Hello, I hope I’m not interrupting?...”

The question, delivered tentatively in a familiar low voice, had all three of them scrambling out of their impromptu cuddle fest to bow a quick greeting to Coups, who looked a little flustered at the sudden display of politeness. 

“It's fine - I just ended my VLIVE session. What are you doing out here too, Coups-hyung?”

“Ah, I was doing my own VLIVE just down there,” he pointed a finger at the other end of the corridor, “since it was a bit noisy in my waiting room. I spotted you guys over here when I was half-done, and thought I’d come to say hi. So, uh, hi. You guys might have appeared in the background of my VLIVE, since I tilted the camera this way - sorry about that."

"It's fine," Jeonghan said. "I gatecrashed Soonyoung's VLIVE earlier, and I'm guessing Dokyeom did as well."

"That's good. Um, I wasn't expecting to see...Dokyeom, you're not promoting at the moment right?" At Seokmin's mute shake of the head, Coups barreled on, "Oh good - I mean! Not 'good as in you're not promoting', but good that I haven't missed your release. How have you been? Feeling better? Oh right, of course you are - the party was weeks ago."

Coups’ bashfulness, so uncharacteristic of the confident charisma he embodied on air, had Soonyoung’s eyes darting in between the dark-haired man and Seokmin, who had gone pink around the ears as he replied to Coups' queries, voice surprisingly steady for someone speaking to a massive crush of theirs. Jeonghan was observing them with the fascinated air of a spectator at a tennis match as well, seemingly as unwilling as Soonyoung to interrupt the pair.

The overhead call for the idols to stand by for the performances promptly ended any budding conversations the four of them could engage in, as harried staff members flooded into the hallway, pushing past the group with clipboards and various stage equipment. Bidding each other goodbye and good luck, all three parties set off towards their respective dressing rooms and waiting managers, prepared for the gruelling round of performances ahead of them.

Much later, while they were standing by the side of the stage, waiting for S.Coups to perform, Jeonghan sidled up beside Soonyoung, leaning in close to be heard over the backing track being tested over the sound system. “Was it just me, or does Dokyeom like S.Coups?”

“Duh, isn’t it obvious?”

“Not really; that’s why I asked. What _is_ obvious is that S.Coups is a little sweet on Dokyeom, which, congrats to Dokyeom for reeling in quite the big fish. But didn’t you think it weird that Dokyeom was so calm? For someone who’s publicly known to get flustered easily around good-looking people, he was unexpectedly calm and collected. I thought he’d get a lot more tongue-tied, or at least gone redder, given how much he’s talked before about idolizing that man. Hell, I rather expected their positions to be switched.”

Soonyoung snorted. “That’s only because he’s so mortified over throwing up at Coups-hyung’s apartment and, I quote “being a general mess” that he’s been on his best behavior around hyung lately. His ears give him away waaay too easily though.”

“To us, it does, but does S.Coups know that?” Jeonghan hummed. “A guy like him,” jerking his chin at where the mentioned idol was waving at the cheering audience, gummy smile wide and genuine, “probably doesn’t do well with rejection - I’d dare to bet he’d avoid it altogether if he could. And he may be fond of Dokyeom for now, but this industry doesn’t allow for much aside from clandestine meetings and guerilla dates. Even those are risks only worth seizing if both parties are on-board with trying it out. If Dokyeom really wants to hook arguably one of the most successful idols in this industry, he would probably need to give S.Coups a little bit more than pink ears to go on - a bit more encouragement, so to speak.”

“Okay one, Dokyeom and the fishing imagery? Not really working. Two, ewww, hyung. Get your mind out of the gutter.”

Jeonghan’s chuckle blended into the blast of brass that blared over them. “I didn’t mean _that_ kind of push, idiot. Now whose mind is in the gutter, to have assumed that?” 

“Well, whatever ‘fishing’ Dokyeom’s doing, that’s for him to sort out, not me. Goodness knows I’ve got enough on my plate for the next month.” 

“Fair enough.” Jeonghan nudged at Soonyoung’s shoulder companionably. “While we’re on the subject of fishing, what about yourself, Soonyoung-ah? Is there anyone who’s been occupying your thoughts recently? Woah, what’s with the scowl?”

“It’s nothing - just an unpleasant thought,” Soonyoung schooled his grimace back into a smile, forcibly dispelling the unexpected image of Woozi that had popped into his mind like an unwanted wart. “Don’t worry, my name’s not going to be romantically linked with anyone else’s anytime soon.”

“If you say so.” Jeonghan’s look was dubious, but he mercifully lapsed into silence as the music started properly, and, on stage, Coups began to dance.

\---

The scent of coffee in the air was enough to set Soonyoung's foot tapping as he peered over the heads in front of him in the line. "Three more people before we reach the front. Are all the orders in yet?"

Wonwoo grunted from where he was tapping on his phone. "Seungkwan's still typing."

"Oh god, it's going to be one of those super-long pretentiously fancy orders, isn't it? Note to self: stop making bet with labelmates."

Wonwoo’s eyes curved into laughing crescents above the standard black face mask they all wore out when in public on their own time. "Say that all you want now, but you never learn."

"Please, I'm just a good hyung who lets his dongsaengs win out of the kindness of my heart." Wonwoo outright snorted at that, and Soonyoung kicked at his shin in retaliation. "Tell Kwannie to type faster, we're almost at the count - _oof!"_

The bump against Soonyoung's side was forceful enough to drop a person caught off-guard, but Soonyoung had endured years dance practice and performances under non-optimal conditions. As such, he only staggered slightly, knocking against Wonwoo's shoulder before jackknifing up again. 

The stranger, it seemed, wasn't quite as lucky. "Oh _shit-_ "

"Who-oops." Soonyoung's hands automatically came up, grabbing the cardboard holder cradling six coffee cups and holding it steady just as its owner lost his own grip on it. Both he and Wonwoo hopped to the side as the man hit the floor in a flurry of limbs and curse words. 

Wonwoo ducked his head immediately, uncomfortable under the curious attention the cafe's customers instinctively turned their way at the commotion. Soonyoung, less concerned for himself, passed the coffees over to Wonwoo and tugged the bill of his cap a little lower before crouching by the stranger.

"Hey, you okay?"

The man, grimacing while massaging his ankle, rattled off something in a language that was distinctly not Korean. Soonyoung glanced up at Wonwoo, who shrugged, equally lost. "Um…"

"Sorry, my bad. I'm still wrapping my head around using Korean normally." The man looked up then, and Soonyoung was immediately struck by his eyes - a light, clear shade of hazel that the idol had only ever managed to achieve with contact lenses. The rest of the stranger was as appealing, with high cheekbones set above full lips and platinum hair slicked back neatly. Nicely pressed slacks, a blazer and a chic red scarf over a simple white shirt completed the look, which, in spite of the unexpected fall, only managed to make its wearer look rakish rather than rumpled.

Wonwoo's knee, knocking against Soonyoung's back, startled the idol out of his scrutiny, and he stood up with the stranger. The rest of the cafe had already lost interest in the tiny scene, turning back to their various distractions as the busy hum of the cafe started up again.

A huge sigh of relief escaped the stranger, his shoulders slumping as Wonwoo handed the cardboard holder back to him. “Seriously, I can’t thank you guys enough - you’ve just saved me a lot of money, and even more trouble.”

“It’s no problem…”

“Vernon. You can call me Vernon.” Vernon squinted at Soonyoung through those stupidly long eyelashes, lips pursing in concentration. “Hey, this might be a weird question but...aren’t you Hoshi?”

Vernon was considerate enough to have lowered his voice to a whisper when he asked the question, but Soonyoung automatically swept a quick glance across the cafe anyway. No one seemed to have perked up in recognition, and Hoshi glanced at his labelmate, who simply blinked slowly. “Um, I am, yeah.”

“Cool.” Vernon looked even better when smiling, ruggedly handsome in a way Soonyoung could only dream of. “I love your stuff, man. I’ve got ‘Hurricane’ on permanent loop on my gym playlist. ‘Touch’ as well; your songs are the bomb, really.”

“Oh, thanks for the support.” Hoshi bobbed his head. “It’s great to know my songs are helping at your gym; I specifically picked EDM beats to drive the energy up when people listen to them.”

“At my gym...? Oh, I don’t run a gym!” Damn it, even surprise looked good on this person evidently. “I actually work at PMBL Entertainment as an intern. But it’s flattering to know that I look as if I could own a gym.” He winked at Soonyoung. “Must mean my workouts have been paying off.”

“Hoshi.” Wonwoo’s pointy elbow poked him in the side, and Soonyoung hissed, dodging the ticklish sensation. “Stop flirting - it’s almost our turn to order.”

“I’m not -!” God, now his own cheeks felt warm, which was decidedly Not Good; from prior glimpses of himself in various reflective surfaces, Soonyoung did not blush fetchingly. “Here, you do the ordering - you have the chat group open anyway.”

“You really sure you wanna trust me with this? Everyone’s coffee order is going to get a mysteriously expensive upgrade, hyung.” Wonwoo took the card Soonyoung thrusted out anyway, his expression promising merciless teasing in the future.

But that was later, and Vernon was here right now. Besides, years of co-existing in the same space had bequeathed Soonyoung with the tolerably-honed ability to deflect his junior’s sly jabs. So Soonyoung decidedly turned back to Vernon, walking with him out of the cafe and into the crisp autumn air. 

“I’m guessing the guy ordering on your behalf is a friend of yours?”

“He’s my junior labelmate, actually - you might have heard of him, as MR. Beanie? He’s actually decently popular in the chillwave genre.”

Vernon made an apologetic face, further solidifying Soonyoung’s theory that it was virtually impossible for the other man to look bad. “I don’t listen to chillwave much, sorry. I’m sure his stuff is fantastic though.”

“That’s fine - my stuff is better anyway.”

“Modest, aren’t we?”

“Naturally - we K-pop idols _never_ brag, don’cha know.” The wind carried their chuckles away, wrapping the early morning chill around the two figures in their stead. Despite himself, Soonyoung shivered slightly, tucking his arms tighter around himself. Vernon frowned at that, immediately tugging his scarf from around his neck and looping it loosely around the other man’s shoulders. 

“Here, use this. It’s getting pretty cold, and as cute as it is, your sweater isn’t going to hold up.”

“Wha-” The red scarf _was_ warm, the distinctive scent of Givenchy tickling his nose, warm and woodsy. “I can’t - I can’t just take this from you!”

“Oh, I’m not giving my scarf to you.” Vernon’s grin was decidedly impish. “But I figured this would kill two birds with one stone - you’ll stop shivering, and I’ll definitely get to see you again when you return it to me.”

Soonyoung’s laugh was a little breathless. Already his hands were adjusting the warm woolen material to sit more snugly around his neck. “Wow, that was unexpectedly direct.”

“Perks of being a foreigner; I'm Korean-American.” Ah, that explained a lot about Vernon’s looks. “It’s worked for me so far.”

“Aren’t _you_ going to be cold now, though?”

“It’s fine - the PMBL building is just around the corner. Plus, I’m pretty hot-blooded.”

There was something charming about Vernon’s directness, drawing Soonyoung in like the proverbial moth to a flame. “I’m no scientist, but I’m not sure that’s how being hot-blooded works. I wouldn’t be feeling the chill at all, otherwise.”

“You _do_ strike me as a passionate type from the interviews I’ve seen on TV. But don’t worry about me - I’m used to New York winters; this is barely anything. Besides, I owe you one for saving all this caffeine, remember?”

“Hansol.”

Both men startled at the unexpected interruption, turning as one to see Woozi standing a few feet away from them. Even the large coat he was in couldn’t soften the edge of his sharp expression, mouth tightly shaped in a disapproving frown. Dark eyes flickered from Vernon to Soonyoung, settling on the scarf around the idol’s neck. There was something cold about the heavy stare, and Soonyoung resisted the urge to duck behind Vernon’s taller figure. For all his years of working in the entertainment industry, he had never been good with direct scrutiny, more so if it was negative or judgemental.

Woozi’s glare was most definitely both.

“Hoshi.” The greeting was perfunctory; Soonyoung had barely enough time to lower his head before Woozi redirected his focus onto Vernon. “Stop dithering around; Seungcheol and his team will have expected those coffees ten minutes ago when they were still hot.”

Vernon bowed, a short and quick thing that Woozi ignored as he brushed past the two of them to enter the cafe, the bell tinkling cheerily in his wake. 

“Geez, what an as- stern man.”

“‘Asshole’, you mean?” Vernon snorted at Soonyoung’s expression. “Don’t worry. I’m not an idol; _I_ can swear without repercussions.”

“Wait, I thought your name was Vernon. Why did Woozi-sunbaenim call you ‘Hansol’?”

“They’re both my names; Vernon’s my American name, and the one I’m most used to. Everyone else in the office is fine with calling me that - Woozi PD-nim’s the only one who insists on using my Korean name.”

“Sounds like he’s stubborn on top of everything else.”

A shrug. “He’s a genius producer; I’m just the intern. I actually flew here from the U.S. just to work under him during my gap year.”

“You flew in from America just to do an internship under him?” Soonyoung couldn’t mask his shock. “That’s a pretty drastic move, isn’t it?”

“Well, he _is_ one of the best music producers in South Korea at the moment; my major is in sound engineering, so I couldn’t pass up on the opportunity. He’s mostly been making me run menial chores though, like coffee runs and photocopying.” Vernon’s voice was glum. “I’ve barely even been allowed in the studios, much less taught the ropes of music production here. Heck, he’s even been dictating what I can and can not wear to work; he actually nixed a good eighty percent of my wardrobe, believe it or not.”

“Yiiiikes. That sounds…” over-controlling and unnecessarily draconian. “Unrelated to your work.”

“Yup, got it in one. I don’t know; I grew up overseas, so maybe it’s more of a Korean culture thing than a Woozi PD-nim thing. Coups-hyung and the other producers have been really nice though, so....yeah. I actually cleaned up my Soundcloud account before I came back in hopes of getting some critique from a professional.” Vernon grimaced. “At this rate though, I’d be lucky if I manage to sustain a conversation with him beyond orders and criticism.”

Well, didn’t that sound about par for the course, thought Soonyoung with some sardonic vindication - it wasn't just him who had had poor run-ins with Woozi after all. Nonetheless, he wasn't about to let one grumpy producer ruin...whatever this was he had started with Vernon. "A Soundcloud account, you say?"

“Yeah, I rap occasionally - mostly in English, but I’m pretty good, if I do say so myself.” Vernon glanced at his watch. “I really should run; Coups-hyung may be pretty easy-going, but I’d rather spare myself more ragging from Woozi PD-nim if he comes out and finds me still here. I’ll give you my Soundcloud link when you return the scarf, yeah?”

“And how will I do that?”

The American threw a blinding smile over his shoulder, already jogging away. “I work for Woozi PD-nim, remember? We’ll probably run into each other again at some point. Thanks again for the help earlier!”

Soonyoung waved at the intern’s retreating back, only jerking slightly when Wonwoo’s dry voice came from behind him,

“Thanks for all the help. I really appreciate your lack of presence when I had to collect all the drinks on my own.”

“Hey, I paid for everything, okay?” Soonyoung relieved the bespectacled man of one of the cardboard drink holders he was carrying. “That’s plenty of help as is. Did you get all the orders right?”

“No thanks to you. Who seems to have somehow obtained a new scarf when I wasn’t looking, hmmm how curious.” Wonwoo’s eyebrows waggled. “Ooh, look at that, you’re going red right on cue. So it’s from the cute stranger, huh? I’m sure Seungkwan, Mingyu and Seokmin will all be interested to learn about this charming man you literally bumped into.”

“Yah, don’t message them!”

“Waa, careful with the drinks-!”

\---

Soonyoung was well familiar with the public image he had crafted for himself: a vivacious mood-maker idol with a goofy penchant for silliness when it came to variety shows. A talented dancer, with the ability to dissect and copy difficult choreography. Occasionally a sex symbol, but only during performances and photoshoots. 

The current proposal being presented to the room didn’t fit into any of the categories Hoshi marketed himself as. That it was a potentially lucrative one was undeniable - Hyunwoo wouldn’t have asked for B.Net’s full roster of talents to sit in on the meeting otherwise. The publicity it could give participating idols also sounded somewhat promising. Yet, the very nature of the project made Soonyoung cringe a little internally, and that alone was enough to render him reluctant to agree to it.

He tried not to fidget noticeably where he was near the head of the table; Kihyun was unfortunately in prime position (right beside him) to deliver discreet, yet sharp slaps beneath the table if he sensed Soonyoung’s attention wavering. Soonyoung’s knee still stung from the last hit. 

At least he wasn’t alone. Across him, Seokmin’s brow was creased at the presentation slide being projected on the meeting room’s projector. From his left came hushed whispers; whether from Seungkwan or Mingyu, or both, Soonyoung couldn’t tell. 

“As you can see, our company has already calculated the logistics of how to pull this project together and market it.” The presenter, a Starfield Entertainment representative who had introduced himself as Joshua, was a balanced mix of professional enthusiasm and boyish earnestness as he gestured at an event flow-chart outlined on the screen. “It should only take a month at most before the app is ready for launch, and promotion for it should be minimal enough so it won’t disrupt most of the participants’ schedules. Of course, any clashes in terms of activities can be negotiated on a case-by-case basis, but we have taken into account most of the major events in the entertainment industry when planning the timeline for this project.”

“I have to admit,” Hyunwoo said mildly, fingers steepled under his chin. “When I first agreed to this meeting, I was not expecting a proposal for an idol dating simulator.”

Joshua nodded. “Its unexpectedness is its strength, sajang-nim - dating simulator games have been performing extremely well in international markets, and given the target demographic it appeals to, it would be remiss of Starfield Entertainment not to take advantage of that here in South Korea.”

B.Net’s CEO nodded thoughtfully before he continued. “Correct me if I’m wrong, Joshua-ssi, but I seem to recall Starfield Entertainment exclusively managing acting talents. Why then would you approach us, an idol-based company, to collaborate with you?”

“Ah of course, forgive my lack of foresight - I should have considered how odd this proposal might seem, coming from our company.” Joshua bowed. “Naturally, some of our actors will be appearing in this game. However, our surveys show that our target demographic’s interest mostly lies in K-pop idols, and we want to capitalize on that interest. Hence, we thought it prudent to secure collaborations with idol companies.” A quick round of clicks brought the slides back to a previous one peppered with pictures of idols looking sultrily at the camera. “So far, we’ve managed to secure the participation of Magic Entertainment and WorldWideHit, who have kindly committed some of their idols to this project. And, of course, we’ll have participating idols from our parent company PMBL as well.”

Coups was not one of the men featured on the slide, Soonyoung noted. Neither was The8, another large earner under the PMBL umbrella. That in itself spoke to the breadth of the project - clearly, despite their investment, PMBL did not consider this project a suitable enough platform to feature their most popular idols in.

Joshua was still talking; to his credit, his passion for the project was very much evident. This wasn’t a man being forced to sell something he wasn’t invested in. “Marketing-wise, we’re thinking of running advertisements on the KTX, alongside online ads on YouTube. If all goes well, we could even have performances of the game’s theme song as special stages on selected music shows - the coordination of the various idols’ availability will be sorted with their managers once we’ve finalized all the participants.”

A brief pause; Soonyoung automatically straightened his back as cat-like eyes landed on him. “If I may be honest, our development team was most interested in potentially recruiting Hoshi for this project.”

“Huh? I mean,” Soonyoung hastily continued, thigh smarting from Kihyun’s warning pinch, “that’s surprising news to me. I am not exactly known for my, uh, acting skills.”

Joshua charitably ignored the stifled giggles that had broken out behind Soonyoung. “Your acting performance was commendable in your ‘BoomBoom’ MV; it was quite the credit to B.Net. Also, your fanbase falls directly in the range of the demographic we hope to reach.”

“Well, I suppose if Hoshi really wants to do it, I don’t see any reason to stop him from joining,” Hyunwoo said mildly. “What do you think, Hoshi-ah?”

“Personally,” Soonyoung said slowly, mind hurriedly piecing together the easiest way to reject the offer without offending any party involved. “I think that, given my focus on dance over acting, some of my labelmates may be better suited for this project than me. Mingyu, for one, actually has acting credits to his name, and would aesthetically fit this project much better than me.”

“I actually wouldn’t mind joining this,” Mingyu’s voice mercifully piped up from further down the table. “My fanbase is also within the targeted demographic, and adding further acting work to my credentials would be an advantageous move.”

“That sounds like a good option to bring back for my team’s consideration,” Joshua said, his diplomatic words at odds with his disappointed air. “I’ll leave you to think our proposal over for a few days, and get back to you next Monday. I do hope to receive a positive response - it would be beneficial for both our companies to collaborate on this, and our affiliation with PMBL means that our production budget will be generous.”

“We will discuss all our options thoroughly, and be ready to negotiate with you on Monday, Joshua-ssi.” Hyunwoo nodded at the representative, who bowed in acknowledgement. “Thank you for coming all this way today.”

Hyunwoo waited until Joshua had excused himself before he addressed Soonyoung. “I’m sure you are aware that the paycheck waiting at the end of this is a very generous one indeed.”

“I know, but...a _dating sim_ though.” Soonyoung’s nose wrinkled. “Not that I have anything against them, but they usually involve cringe-y scenes and love declarations. I’m terrible at those.”

“You already do that on VLIVEs and shows though, hyung.”

“But he does those on his own terms, Seungkwan,” Seokmin pointed out before Soonyoung could protest. “These are scripted, and you know how embarrassed Soonyoung-hyung gets with those. Remember that MNet challenge where he had to read a love confession given by the PD-nim out loud? That was hilarious precisely because he sucked so badly at it.”

“Wow, I thought you were defending me, but you’re really just dragging me here, huh?”

Seokmin shot Soonyoung an impish grin, before continuing. “There are still dozens of that MNet clip online - can you imagine how many cringey videos there’ll be if Soonyoung-hyung does this game? And you can bet that those videos will eventually end up resurfacing non-stop during variety show appearances, like a zombie that won’t die. So, if anyone joins this project, they’d better be proud of the recordings they’re going to do. Honestly, my vote goes to Mingyu - he aces fan service like a pro, and he’s pretty shameless about it.”

“What’s there to be ashamed about? I can’t help being a lady killer.”

Seokmin waved at Mingyu the way a conductor might twirl his baton. “I rest my case.”

“The profit is good, as is the publicity for the company, so I want at least one of you in on this project.” The CEO got to his feet. “I did, however, promise you all autonomy in the activities you choose to do, so I’ll allow you all to come to a consensus on the participant B.Net will send. Just update your managers when you’ve decided what you’d like to do about this collaboration.”

“Yes, sajang-nim.” All the talents at the table got up on their feet, bowing as Hyunwoo left the room.

The door had barely closed behind the CEO when Seungkwan snickered, already slouching back into his seat. “I don’t know about you guys, but Joshua? Totally gay for Soonyoung-hyung, I swear. Did you see how his eyes practically sparkled when they looked at him?”

“Language, Seungkwan.” Seokmin grinned, his own eyebrows waggling. “But he did seem extra-interested in hyung, didn’t he?” 

“Either way, he’s not that interested in Mingyu, is he?”

“Just give me some time; I’m pretty sure I’ll change his mind once he sees me in action.”

“For an acting agency rep, he’s not very good at acting.” Wonwoo propped his chin on his hand. “Nor good at making choices.”

“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?!”

“It means that, intellectually, I’d really be the better pick.” Mingyu smirked. “All offense meant, Hoshi-hyung.”

“Yah, show some respect to your hyung!”

“So, how about it, hyung?” Seokmin interrupted before Soonyoung could throw a proper snit. “Will you take the offer up?” 

The idol in question turned to look at his manager, who shrugged, not even looking up from his phone. “You know my stance on seizing profits whenever you can, embarrassing project or not. Right now, you can technically afford to reject it, but I'd be all for it.”

"Mmmm, I'll probably pass then. I really don’t need a more torturous and prolonged repeat of that MNet debacle."

“But the _money_ ," Seungkwan moaned, draping himself dramatically across the table. "Hell, I'd do a lot worse for that amount. Plus, it'd be good publicity. Jooheon-hyung, could you submit my name for this? Carpe diem and all that."

Seungkwan’s manager flashed him a thumbs up. “Easily done, my dude. Joshua-ssi did say they wanted to collaborate with B.Net any how, and I can definitely try to make a case for you to join this alongside Mingyu."

“Jooheon-ah, let’s swap idols.” Kihyun grumbled, finally pocketing his phone. “Mine isn’t proactive enough - my activity negotiation and contact skills are wasted on him. Or Hyungwon, how about you? Do you want to trade, since apparently Mingyu will be rolling in dating sim money and can probably buy his hardworking manager yangnyeom chicken for all the demands he’s had to put up with?”

“Hyunnnnng.” The rest of the room dissolved into sniggers as Soonyoung wailed, dramatically clutching Kihyun’s arm as the manager tried unsuccessfully to dislodge him. “I’ve bought you yangnyeom chicken dozens of times! Plus, you always complain that I have too many activities to sort into my schedule. What more do you want?”

“For you to make more money so I can earn more money,” Kihyun deadpanned to even more laughter.

Mingyu leaned over the table so he could look over Kihyun at Soonyoung, smiling slyly. “You really sure you don't wanna join this project, hyung? Kihyun-hyung would be happy, and I volunteer to write a FAQ to ace your route and unlock all your awkward kissy faces.”

“Stuff it, Mingoo.” Soonyoung stuck out his tongue at his junior, pushing his chair back and getting onto his feet. "Seriously, if we’re all agreed on proposing Mingyu and Seungkwan, Seokminnie and I have archery practice scheduled. Gotta get good before ISAC."

Wonwoo groaned, sliding down in his seat dismally. "Ugh, don't remind me of ISAC. I can't believe I got signed up for track. _Track_! Who looked at me and decided 'hey, Wonwoo looks like he can run'?"

"The same person who looked at me and thought 'hey, Soonyoung can act', probably. Who knows, maybe you might actually win in your event. Oh wait, my bad - 'events'; you got slotted into hurdles as well, didn't you?"

Wonwoo made a distraught sound where he had smushed his face against the table, Mingyu cackling beside him. Seokmin reached over to pat his shoulder comfortingly. "Maybe it won't be so bad, hyung - no one's expecting too much of you anyway, so that's less pressure, right? Plus, you're pretty good at running from responsibilities and all; maybe that's why management thought you'd have good sprinting abilities. Right, Hoseok-hyung?"

"No offense, Seokmin-ah, but has anyone told you your comforting skills could use some work?"

"He's not wrong though, Wonwoo-ah," Wonwoo's manager pointed out, grinning. "Be thankful I didn't sign you up for ssireum."

"Is it considered a 'small mercy' if it isn't mercy at all in the first place? Besides, Seokmin has better thighs; if anyone should join ssireum, it should be him.”

“Yes, but you’d be more amusing to watch. Plus, going viral on YouTube will be free publicity.”

“Yah!” Wonwoo lifted his head high enough to shoot a dirty look at his unrepentant manager as the rest of the table exploded into laughter. ‘You’re supposed to support me, not make me look bad!”

“I _am_ supporting you - you didn’t end up in ssireum, did you?”

“Smooth, hyung.” Mingyu high-fived Hoseok, even as Wonwoo dropped his head back against polished mahogany. “Besides, Seokmin-hyung can’t join ssireum; he’s gotta go practice his archery so that he can fire his love-arrow straight into Coups-sunbaenim’s heart.”

Seokmin yelped as the laughter promptly turned into groans, with Seungkwan slapping at Mingyu as he yelled something about bad dad jokes.

“On that lame note, we’re going to actually take our leave. Don’t wait up, boys; we’re not leaving the archery range until Seokminnie is sure he’ll impress Coups-sunbaenim.”

“Mark my words,” Wonwoo called gloomily as the pair, accompanied by their managers, moved to leave the meeting room, “ISAC is going to be a shit show."

"Yeah yeah, oracle-nim. Catch you guys later at the dorm."

\---

"What are you guys watching?"

"Oh hey, hyung." Eyes still glued to the dormitory's old television, Mingyu wriggled around on the couch until there was sufficient space for Soonyoung to plonk down between him and Wonwoo. "It's that Lunar special we joined at sajang-nim's request. That 'The Boss is Watching' variety thingy."

"Ahhhh, that." Soonyoung hooked his ankles over Wonwoo's, grinning as the latter unsuccessfully tried to shake him off. On-screen, Red Velvet's Joy was a bundle of tense nerves as her hand hovered over a choice of two buttons, a heavy water balloon looming over her head to a generic ominous backing track. Mingyu shuddered.

“God, this game sucked. I never want to see another water balloon again."

"Easy for you to say, you weren't the one playing it."

"Well, you _do_ have the best reactions, Kwannie." 

Curled in the beanbag on the floor, Seokmin echoed Soonyoung’s sentiment, grinning as Seungkwan grumbled about being ganged up on from where he was perched on a foot stool. As the B.Net talents watched, the filming camera panned quickly around the studio, showing close-ups of idols looking nervous for maximum effect. 

"Why did sajang-nim want us on this again? It's been thirty minutes in, and we've barely gotten any screen time, sajang-nim included."

"It's good publicity for B.Net, duh. Plus, it gave sajang-nim a good platform to form some rapport with other CEOs without the pressure other industry events have." Wonwoo didn't look up from where his thumbs were tapping almost frantically on his phone. "What I don't get is why the hell _we_ are watching this in our super-sparse free time - aww _yessss,_ eat _that,_ you punk-ass bitch. See if you wanna come KS in my lane again -" 

"It's not considered 'watching' if your eyes are actually glued to that LoL game, hyung." The beanbag rustled as Seokmin turned to grin at the second-oldest in the dorm. On-screen, the water balloon finally popped over a squealing Joy, drenching her fetchingly. "You didn't even watch when they did a slo-mo recap of your, I quote, 'milky thighs' during the ssireum tournament. Which, considering all the samgyeopsal you've been eating recently, were a lot skinnier than I expected."

"We should have done a cross-dressing skit like BTOB did," Seungkwan mused out loud, diplomatically ignoring the rude gesture Wonwoo distractedly flashed in his direction by accident. "That netted them a _lot_ of screen time, and they made it into the ads promoting the show. Plus, I'd look good in a skirt."

"Over my dead body."

"Easy enough - would definitely make it easier to get you in those high heels." Snickering, Soonyoung dodged Wonwoo's half-hearted kick. "Can you imagine sajang-nim's face though, if we had done it?"

"Eh, he'd probably look politely flummoxed, like he always does. Sajang-nim's a really good sport, for the most part. I mean, considering how he's put up with Soonyoung-hyung's diva demands and all."

" _Hoi!_ "

"You know who doesn't look like a good sport?" Seungkwan tipped his chin at where the camera had zoomed in on the various CEOs sitting behind their tiny podiums. "PMBL sajang-nim. Dude looks kind of scary-strict."

"I know, right? Seungcheol-hyung won the sirreum round and -"

"Ooooooh, _Seungcheol_ -hyung, ey?" Soonyoung waggled his eyebrows at Seokmin, while Seungkwan mimed an appalled expression, hand dramatically pressed to his chest. Even Wonwoo looked up from his game long enough to throw a shit-eating smirk at the flustered man on the beanbag.

"T-that's not the point! I meant that even though Seungcheol-hyung-"

" _Seungcheol_ -hyuuuuung."

"Seungcheol-ahhhhh."

"Seungcheol _jagiiii_."

" _Guys_." Seokmin's groan was muffled by his hands, lost amidst the snickering of his labelmates.

"I know what Seokmin means though," Mingyu finally said, after the spurts of laughter had trickled off. "All the other CEOs have been pretty cool with going along with the hosts and stuff, but man, PMBL sajang-nim is like a _rock._ Or one of those Jeju statues, only instead of benevolent, he just looks mean."

"Oi, don't insult the dol hareubangs. They're blessed, okay?"

"I don't think he even smiled at Coups-hyung's win," Soonyoung mused, ignoring the crowd-laughter track played on screen. "He must be terribly good at being CEO though - PMBL is one of the Big Three, after all."

"Eh, he runs a super-tight ship, for sure,” Mingyu hummed. “Minghao - that’s The8 - says his schedules whenever he's in South Korea is nuts. He much prefers doing promotions in China, since the China side of the company is a little less demanding."

"Still, the amount of influence PMBL has is no joke." Wonwoo attempted to poke at Mingyu with a toe. "Better not trash-talk the guy you're going to be indirectly working under. You finalized your participation in that dating sim project today, right?"

"You’re poking the wrong person, Wonu."

"Just pass the poke on, Soonyoung-ah."

Mingyu expertly avoided Soonyoung's foot, tucking his legs up under him on the couch. "The project's under Starfield though, not PMBL."

“Ten thousand won says PMBL will have a significant say in the project, even if they don’t have their main idols participating. Starfield's primarily an acting agency, which means they probably don't have as much experience with idol-based projects. If PMBL wants to - ah, fuck, fuck, _fuuuuuck yes -_ if PMBL wants to protect their investment, and they _will_ want to, my guess is that they'll stick their thumbs in controlling the direction of the project, especially in terms of marketing."

"Wow, did League of Legends teach you all that, hyung?"

"Fuck off." But Wonwoo looked up long enough to wrinkle his nose at Seungkwan, amusement clear on his features. "Just because some people don't know how to handle controls -"

"Oh oh, guys, it's Kwannie's turn with the balloon!" 

Seokmin's gleeful exclamation, and Seungkwan's subsequent high-pitched whining quietened everyone (except Wonwoo) enough to pay attention to the television once more. As the CEOs appeared on the screen again, Soonyoung couldn't quite repress a shiver at the unimpressed expression carved into the PMBL CEO's face, his mouth a thin line below narrowed eyes. This was a man one shouldn't cross, by the looks of it.

Then on-screen Seungkwan pressed a button, the balloon above him fell in slow motion, and any thought of the PMBL CEO was drowned out by the room's raucous laughter, underscored by Seungkwan's surprised screech filtering through the speakers. 

\---

"Hoshi-ssi!” A vaguely familiar man bowed to Soonyoung, halting the idol where he had been exiting the gym, duffel bag slung over his shoulder. “I’m not sure if you remember me, but I’m Joshua Hong from Starfield Entertainment. Could I speak to you for a moment?"

“Oh, Joshua-ssi.” The Starfield representative looked as soulfully earnest as he had during their first meeting, still neat and put-together despite the very late hour. “What are you doing here?"

"You have quite the full schedule; this was the only time I could catch you this week, apparently." Joshua peered, owl-like at Soonyoung. "I’m sorry for this inconvenience - are you in a hurry? I would really prefer to do this over a proper meal or drinks, but the proposal I have for you is on a bit of a time limit, I’m afraid."

“Is this is about the dating sim project you pitched to us the last time? I was told Mingyu would officially be the sole participant from B.Net.”

"Ah yes, we settled the terms and conditions with Kim Mingyu-ssi last week. This is something else."

"Oh? Um, Kihyun-hyung isn't with me right now, if what you want to discuss is work-related. If you'd like, I can ask him to arrange a proper meeting tomorrow? My morning should be relatively free." 

"Actually, if I’m being honest, I was waiting for you in hopes of catching you without your manager around.”

There was something disconcertingly heavy in Joshua's gaze where it rested on Soonyoung. It made something uneasy curl in Soonyoung’s stomach, and he briefly entertained the thought of lying about having an urgent last-minute schedule so he could escape this odd tension. 

In the end, his professionalism won out. Soonyoung sighed, running a hand through his hair in a makeshift attempt to neaten it. “Could we have this discussion somewhere a little more private at least?”

“Oh definitely, of course.” Joshua herded them over to a nearby car park, and into a small black Hyundai Equus tucked into the furthest corner. The Starfield representative was kind enough to wait until Soonyoung was settled in the front seat with his gym bag in his lap before he spoke again.

“Hoshi-ssi, your contract with B.Net Entertainment is up for renegotiation this September, isn’t it?"

"It is, yeah." Soonyoung hadn't spared much thought towards his contract's expiry, certain as he was about re-signing with B.Net without a fuss. Kihyun, for all his grumbling, was a capable manager, and Hyunwoo had not reneged on his end of the deal to allow Soonyoung control over his career.

“Well then, if you are interested in considering it, Starfield Entertainment would like to potentially offer you a contract with us.”

Soonyoung blinked, blinked again, then gaped, wide-eyed at Joshua. “ _What_?”

“Of course, you would still have to attend auditions and the basic interviews, but those are really just protocol more than anything-”

“Uh, just - if I could just double-confirm what you just said, did you just...offer me a contract with Starfield?”

“Yes, I did.” Joshua looked too alarmingly sincere to be pulling his leg. Also, it seemed in poor taste for this to be some kind of hidden camera prank. Soonyoung discreetly glanced at the sedan’s dashboard anyway, just to be sure. “I know it seems very sudden, but I can assure you this was not a spontaneous, nor hastily-made decision on Starfield’s part. Oh, I’m sure you have questions, of course, and I’ll be happy to answer them. But I think you’ll be interested in hearing what I have to say.”

“Uh.” Soonyoung abruptly, desperately missed his manager; Kihyun was a million times more equipped to deal with the technicalities of idol management than Soonyoung. He was also much more diplomatic when it came to rejecting offers without harming any working relations between B.Net and other parties. “Um. I don’t mean to offend, but I remember hearing that Starfield primarily manage acting talents.”

“We do, yes.”

“Joshua-ssi.” There was no way to put this nicely, Soonyoung despaired internally. God, where was Kihyun when you needed him? “I’m an idol, not an actor. And, I’m very sorry, but I truly have no interest in venturing into acting anytime soon.”

“I’m aware of that from our last meeting, yes.” There was something fox-like to Joshua’s smile. “Don’t worry; you would not be listed under our acting stable, Hoshi-ssi. Rather, you would be the pioneer of our fledgling idol program, which is currently set to run around mid-July this year.” 

“...Pardon me for saying this, but you seem to be involved in a lot of start-up programs in Starfield, Joshua-ssi.”

“Well, that’s what they brought me on board for.” Joshua leaned forward in his seat, excitement coloring his words. “We had several candidates in mind, but I fought for you especially. Your fanbase, while not as large as some, is solid, and your work ethic is excellent. You’re an attractive visual, and have some specialities - your dancing, for one - that could be capitalized on, moving forward in your career. I know you mostly rap more than you sing, but that can be improved with training and experience. And despite your misgivings during our last meeting, your acting skills aren’t as bad as you seem to think. Of course, that could be trained as well, so maybe you can do guest appearances or maybe minor roles in dramas-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” It took a few deep breaths before Soonyoung had his emotions, panicked and scrambled, back under control. “I appreciate that you have so much faith in me, Joshua-ssi, and that you think I’m, ah, so skilled. However, I’m sorry to have to decline your offer.”

“Don’t you want to hear what we can offer you first?” Without waiting for Soonyoung’s reply, Joshua rattled on, expression determined. “Firstly, we can give you better profit distribution, especially in terms of physical sales. Also, your music videos, promotions, fan meets, concerts - we can spare a larger budget for these, and promote them across more platforms for a larger audience reach. Maybe even get you on more variety shows? We’re in the process of setting up recording equipment and studios, which will be top-of-the-line, based on the setups we observed at PMBL. Oh, and also! Once we established you as a Starfield talent, I figured we could start planning an official lightstick design, maybe even organize a tour by next year.”

Soonyoung’s mind, desperately steadfast in the face of all this temptation, stuttered to a stop at the mention of ‘tour’. It was a wish he hadn’t even dreamed of entertaining yet, his performances mostly limited to music show appearances and a few local concerts. He understood his current level of fame didn’t make a tour a particularly profitable venture for B.Net, but for Joshua to so casually mention planning one for _him_ of all people...it seemed like a dream too good to be true.

“Joshua-ssi, this all sounds…it all sounds _really_ great. But about the music -”

“Oh, don’t worry about that - we’ll make sure to hire award-winning music producers and choreographers to work on your releases. With any luck, we might even get Woozi PD-nim to produce a couple of songs; we are affiliated with PMBL, after all.”

Not even the mention of Woozi's name could sour the vision Joshua had effectively conjured into Soonyoung’s imagination. And what a vision it was - singles, albums, shows, fan meets, a tour - even at his greediest, the idol had not dreamed to such an extent. The thought of being able to finally let the world see what he had to show them, unconstrained by budget cuts, backed by a team that could allow him to stretch those wings he knew he had…

And yet. _And yet._

"I just want to know one thing, if it’s alright, Joshua-ssi."

"Of course, ask away."

“Right now, under B.Net, my current contract allows me a lot of creative control over my music and image. I get full say in my choreography, and while I don’t fully write and produce my songs, I have the right to offer input whenever I want, and reject songs I may not want to sing. Can Starfield promise me that kind of autonomy as well?”

To his credit, the hesitation, which morphed into regret on Joshua’s face, appeared genuine under the lights of the sedan’s interior. “I can promise that the team assigned to you will listen to every suggestion you make, and take them into serious consideration, Hoshi-ssi. You are a professional, after all, so naturally, we would value your input greatly.”

Soonyoung waited.

“...but well, since this idol program is still in its infancy, a brand new venture even, Starfield would need a guarantee that it turns a profit going forward. So, as much as I want to acquiesce to your request, we cannot risk it. There may be times when we may have to, ah, prioritize what the public wants to see over what you might want to experiment with.”

“Then, it seems to me,” said Soonyoung, folding his hands neatly over his gym bag, “I will have to regretfully decline your generous offer. Your contract terms are amazing, but…but what matters most to me is my freedom to choose exactly who I am as an idol. Hoshi reflects my choices and tastes, and my fan base responds to that, even if sometimes the industry doesn’t. Giving that up isn’t something I’m keen on doing.”

Seeing Joshua’s disappointment up close a second time wasn’t any more fun than it had been the first time. “Oh, I - but are you sure? If you change your mind at a later time, I cannot guarantee this offer will still be open.”

“I’m sure.” Soonyoung ducked his head, smiling at the bewildered representative. “Thank you again for considering me; I truly appreciate that I am regarded so highly in your esteem. I hope the idol project takes off successfully. Now, if you'll excuse me, it’s getting late, and I should return to my dorm. Goodnight, Joshua-ssi, and good luck.”

Leaving the car felt odd, the sounds of the city filtering back into his ears as if he had been cut away from the world for the past twenty minutes. The first step away from the sedan was weirdly weighted, directed away from a future potentially much bigger than the path he was walking down. The second, and every step after it though, felt freeing. 

Soonyoung gave in to the small grin that tugged at his lips as he tugged his cap down over his forehead.

“Did I make the wrong choice?” he asked much later, phone pressed to his ear where he was stretched out on the dormitory couch’s arm rest.

Jeonghan’s voice hummed down the line. “To me, personally? Kind of. Sounds like they promised you a lot that B.Net couldn’t. But it seems like _you_ don’t regret it.”

“I really don’t, hyung. Isn’t that weird?” Soonyoung exhaled, curling further into the cushion he was clutching. “I’ve always thought I wanted a big break - and I guess this could have been the road leading to it. I mean, a _tour_ , hyung. But if it comes at the expense of my creativity…I don’t know, I’ve done what I wanted for so long, it wouldn’t feel as right to stand on stage singing songs I don’t feel in my heart, y’know? Or dance someone else’s steps to lyrics that aren’t _me_.”

Jeonghan’s chuckle filtered through the earpiece. “You’re writing that down as lyrics right now, aren’t you?”

“Shit, you’re right. I _should._ ” Soonyoung jumped to his feet, abandoning the pillow in favor for a pen and any scrap of paper he could get his hands on. “Stand...on...stage...dance someone else’s....steps...Thanks for the heads up, hyung. If this ends up in a song, I’ll credit you in interviews. ”

“Mmmm.” There was a pause. “Well, maybe what you did was right after all, Soonyoung-ah. If this guy was brought on to get this start-up going, of course he’d promise you the moon and beyond. Who knows if they really would have kept their word?”

“Still I…” Soonyoung nibbled at his lip, debating if he really wanted to say what had popped into his mind. “I...to be frank, hyung? I rather wish the offer had been made to you.” At the ensuing silence, he hurriedly added, “then again, like you said, who knows if they would have followed through on what they promised? Plus, Starfield isn’t familiar with the K-pop industry - there has to be some differences between managing idols and actors, right? They’ll probably make decisions you wouldn’t agree with or something. Joshua-ssi sounded pretty certain about getting help from from PMBL, but affiliated companies don’t work that closely with each other, do they?”

“Joshua-ssi?” An odd inflection entered Jeonghan’s voice. “That’s the Starfield rep’s name?”

“Yup. Same guy who proposed the dating sim project to us, believe it or not. He’s terribly persistent - weirdly fixated on our company, for some reason. Or, uh, me. I guess he’s a fan if he’s that hard-up to poach me?” Soonyoung snorted. “Mingyu said he probably wants to jump my bones, but that’s Mingyu for you.”

The line went silent. Then, “Maybe. Hey, listen, I’ve got to go. Talk to you next time?”

“Sure, hyung. Take care.” Ending the call, Soonyoung considered rehashing the whole event for Seokmin when he got back later, then decided against it. Better that he not mention it to any labelmate, best friend or not. His contract was up for renewal soon; it would be best not to tempt fate in any way. 

Picking up the scrap of paper he had scribbled on, Soonyoung devoted the rest of the night to messing around with new rap lyrics, the meeting with Joshua eventually leaving his mind in favor of rhyming phrases.


	2. Act Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This whole fic's been written already; acts will go up as I finish editing. It'll definitely be completely up before 2020!

"Okay, spill."

"Huh?" Seokmin looked up from where he was munching on a bowl of cereal, blinking blearily at Soonyoung. Across the table, Wonwoo stared at where Soonyoung had slammed his palms down on the dining table before lifting his distinctly unimpressed look to rest on Soonyoung instead.

"Yah, Soonyoung-ah, please try not to break any more furniture in the middle of the night. I don't think Kihyun-hyung's quite forgiven you for the sink repairs yet."

Ignoring Wonwoo, Soonyoung waved his phone accusingly in Seokmin's face. "You and Coups-hyung were on the same episode of 'Men on a Mission'!"

"Oh, yeah, we were." Seokmin swallowed his mouthful of soggy Kellogg's flakes before he spoke again. "It was a super last-minute thing; their people contacted Minhyuk-hyung at some ungodly time in the morning - on the 3rd, I think? The episode’s theme was supposed to be idol-rappers with Seungcheol-hyung, Moonbyul-noona and Il-Hoon-sunbaenim, but Moonbyul-noona had to drop out because of some scheduling conflicts. So, I filled in as the comic relief rapper, I guess? They probably would have asked you if you had been free, but you had that Anan photoshoot -"

"Irrelevant!" Soonyoung's palms hit the table again over Wonwoo's vocal protests. "The point is you and Coups-hyung were in the same space, and not only did you _not_ come back swooning, sighing or babbling about what a gentleman he is, you literally didn't breathe a _word_ about to me. Who are you and what did you do to the real Seokmin?"

"He's got a point." Wonwoo leant forward, his annoyance fading at the promise of gossip. "You usually can't stop singing S.Coups' praises. What gives?"

"It's nothing, really!" Seokmin tried, unconsciously clutching his spoon close to him like some kind of flimsy shield. "I just didn't want to bore you guys with my….stuff...? Okay, the dual-staring is kind of creepy, cut it out."

"Since when have you cared about boring us when it comes to Coups-hyung? I still remember being forced to sit and listen to the whole 'Change Up' album with you on the day you got it."

Wonwoo’s grimace was suitably sympathetic. "You too, huh? He cornered me on one of my free days. Used up a whole hour of my productivity, aish."

"Please, you were losing multiple matches on Overwatch when I found you, hyung. Besides, listening to _art_ is productive _!_ " As quickly as it had puffed up, Seokmin’s indignation deflated alarmingly rapidly. "Anyway, it's really nothing. I...I've evolved into a more mature fan who stans their idols with dignity, and respect their boundaries as a professional."

"Yeah, no. Something's definitely happened that you're not telling us." Soonyoung softened his tone, pulling out a seat to settle properly at the table with his head propped on his hands. "Minnie-ah, I know we all joke a lot about you being easily intimidated, but did Coups do something that made you feel uncomfortable? I thought the two of you were on friendly terms with each other."

That was putting it very lightly - in the weeks following the impromptu meeting at Music Bank, Seokmin and Coups had apparently run into each other several more times on various shows, in backstage corridors and, during one particularly memorable incident, at the fried chicken place Seokmin loved to frequent for late-night dinners. Soonyoung knew of all these because every single time, without fail, his best friend would come back to the dorm rosy-cheeked and bubbling over with praises of ‘Seungcheol-hyung’. Truth be told, he had assumed it was only a matter of time before Seokmin fumbled out an announcement that he and Coups had decided to try dating secretly.

This sudden odd silence regarding Coups was therefore strange, especially following all the oversharing Seokmin had been doing up to now. What didn't help was how small his friend suddenly looked, his spoon clattering where his hand had dropped to the table top. Something tickled Soonyoung’s mind then, and he frowned. “Did Coups-hyung accuse you of, what was it you said, ‘crossing boundaries’? Oh my god, Minnie, did _he_ touch you inappropriately? Without your consent? I know you like him, but you’ve gotta report these kinds of -”

"No! No,” Seokmin repeated, calmly deliberate if still unusually stilted. “He didn’t, no one touched anyone. I just might have, I don’t know, accidentally overstepped myself? I’m not too sure, but, like, I’m pretty awkward and not the best at reading situations, so maybe I just didn’t notice what I did. Gosh, sometimes it’s kind of funny that I’m an idol, right? You’d think I’d know how to handle myself better, haha."

"Seokmin-ah." Wonwoo had stopped poking at his cup of ramyun at Seokmin’s forced laughter, his eyes concerned behind his spectacles. "You handle yourself just fine. Knowing you, whatever it is you might have done is probably not as bad as you claim it is. Also, new house rule: in this dorm, we share what happened before we start heaping blame on ourselves. So, as Soonyoung said earlier, spill. Did something happen during filming today?" 

"No, everything went great, Seungcheol-hyung was charismatic as always. Just…well." Seokmin visibly hesitated, picking at his fingernails as he stalled. "You know how everyone hangs out in the waiting rooms until the crew call for us to come on set? I tried visiting hyung’s room before filming started to greet him, but his manager wouldn’t let me in. Wouldn't even call him to the door, because he was apparently busy. Which, y'know, makes sense, hyung being who he is and all. But Il-Hoon-sunbaenim told me later that he and Seungcheol-hyung chilled in his waiting room for a good half hour before the show started. He even asked why I didn’t drop by to say hello.” The idol drew in a deep breath, before releasing it in an audible huff. “But it's probably just me overthinking - during the filming breaks, he was friendly and nice.”

‘Friendly and nice’. Soonyoung felt the wrinkle in his forehead deepen. These weren’t adjectives one used to describe close friends, much less someone you were practically on the verge of seeing romantically. 

“Maybe his manager is new, and doesn’t want to mess up on the job. Or maybe he doesn’t know that the two of you are close.” Wonwoo hummed thoughtfully. “You should have texted him asking if you could visit him pre-show. That’s what I did once, when I wanted to greet the Epik High sunbaes.” 

“Um.” Seokmin wilted under the pair of expectant glances. “I...don’t have his number? Okay, look, before the two of you start yelling, I was honestly going to ask for it at the dinner party ages ago. But I got sick, remember? Trying not to embarrass myself was my main priority at the time. Then after that, I guess the time just never felt right? Like, I didn’t wanna force Seungcheol-hyung into feeling like he has to give his contact info to me.”

“He can’t be _that_ fussy about that; remember how easily he texted me after the Seoul gayo?” Soonyoung was already fishing around his pockets for his phone. “I still have his contact info, actually. Do you want it? It shouldn’t have changed -”

“No, no, it’s okay, hyung! It doesn’t feel right to fish his number off someone else. What am I even going to do with it anyway, message him after how I ‘ignored’ him?” The self-deprecating grimace looked out of place on Seokmin’s usually sunny features. “It’d be embarrassing. Or, worse, uncalled for.”

“No, it won’t, considering you’re just trying to explain an honest mistake. Look, the message doesn’t even have to be anything fancy - just say you got his number off me, apologize for not greeting him on-set, and explain that it was a misunderstanding.” The memory of what Jeonghan had once said surfaced in his memory. “You could even take the opportunity to invite him out for a drink or a meal, instead of hoping for another serendipitous run-in with him. You’ve gotta take some initiative, Seokminnie; Coups-hyung could use a little push from you, you know.” 

“‘A little push’?”

“Yeah, because you like him?”

As expected, Seokmin bloomed into bright shades of red, hiding his expression behind his sleeves. “Aww man, is it really obvious? I’ve been trying to keep it under control, especially around Seungcheol-hyung. I doubt he needs a lovesick idiot hovering around him.” 

“Honestly? Coups-hyung would likely welcome it, if that ‘idiot’ were you. Last time I saw you two, he was as flustered around you as you were around him. I’m pretty sure he likes you too, Seokminnie.”

“...Do you think so?”

“I agree with Soonyoung - I haven’t even met Coups-sunbaenim officially, and even I can tell that he likes you.” Wonwoo shrugged. “Unless you’ve been lying about how your impromptu meetings have turned out, sounds like it’s a safe bet that he has _some_ feelings for you.”

“But…” Seokmin buried his head in his hands. “But what if you guys are wrong? Not that I don’t trust what you’re saying, but it’s...I don’t want to embarrass myself or Seungcheol-hyung. Worse still, what if I end up inconveniencing Seungcheol with my feelings?”

“Well, that’s for him to decide, isn’t it? Anyway, you can see for yourself how hyung acts around you the next time we meet. ISAC is in a few weeks, isn’t it? You can always approach him for his number then, and the rest of us can gloat about being correct.”

“Mmm.” Seokmin still looked doubtful, but the man was a little more cheery when he excused himself to go to bed. Sighing, Soonyoung slumped over the counter top fully. 

“God, as if dealing with constant scrutiny, stress and fatigue weren’t bad enough. Feelings are messy shit.” 

"I haven't seen that ‘Men on a Mission' episode." Wonwoo hummed, rescuing his cup from where Soonyoung had almost knocked it over. "Were Seokmin and S.Coups awkward together?"

"Not at all - their banter seemed natural enough. Both of them are professionals though; for all the downplaying he does, you know Minnie is good at hiding his emotions when he needs to."

"True. I guess we'll just have to see at ISAC.” Wonwoo took his time chewing before he continued speaking. “Speaking of feelings, how’s things with that Vernon dude? You still going out with him?”

The idol grunted, scrunching his cheek up against the cool marble. “Don’t say ‘going out’ - makes it sound like I’m dating him.”

“Well, you are, aren’t you?”

“Nah. I’m definitely not as invested in him as Seokmin is with Coups.”

“So you say.”

“No, really. We aren’t dating, or even hooking up.” The weekly coffee meet-ups that had characterized the start of his friendship with Vernon had petered out into the irregular lunch break whenever both of them were free. Even then, the two-hour chats had eventually dwindled to short conversations that sometimes only clocked in at 30 minutes before one of them had to depart to a schedule or task. 

It wasn’t that Vernon was a terrible person; on the contrary, he was exactly as he had appeared to be the first time Soonyoung met him: congenial and charming, with a lovely accent to complement both traits. However, all these traits couldn’t quite mask the fact that their conversational interests overlapped a lot less than Soonyoung had expected. Vernon wasn’t particularly interested in dissecting the intricacies of dance choreography, and try as he might, he couldn’t really sympathize with the difficulties of the idol lifestyle. For all the talk about his Soundcloud, the aforementioned account only hosted five songs which utilized almost identical beats, despite the diversity in lyrics. A few questions about music and sound production revealed that Vernon was about as knowledgeable in these fields as Soonyoung, which was to say, not much at all.

Soonyoung himself wasn’t all that interested in listening to how American life and house parties were like. Talking about different rap styles and their favorite rappers worked for a while, but eventually grew stale over time. Once, when Vernon had started passionately advocating for legalizing marijuana in South Korea, the idol had immediately shushed him, unwilling to risk being caught in a conversation about drugs by a random bystander, or worse, the media.

Unsurprisingly, the initial attraction had therefore slowly cooled into a polite friendship.

If he was being honest, the most animated conversations they had these days mostly involved commiserating over Woozi’s stringent behavior as Vernon’s supervisor. From the general menialness of his given tasks to how Woozi watched him like a hawk during the few company-wide celebration dinners he was allowed to attend, the American fed Soonyoung’s dislike of the music producer with constant fodder to sustain itself. 

“Dating or not,” Wonwoo interrupted Soonyoung’s thoughts, “Shouldn’t you be sleeping? I overheard Kihyun-hyung say something about picking you up at 5 a.m. before he left.”

“Shit, what time is it?” Soonyoung glanced at the clock, moaning pitifully as he registered the hour. “Awww fuck, four hours. I’ll probably nap at the salon later if the bleach doesn’t burn too much.” 

“Dyeing your hair again? RIP your scalp.”

“It’s not my fault I look good blonde.”

“Fair. You’d look pretty good bald as well.” Wonwoo’s smirk was lazy, one hand raising his cup in the face of Soonyoung’s glower. “Or maybe Kihyun-hyung should start soliciting endorsements from hair-growth supplement companies? You’d be such a pretty spokesperson.”

“You’re lucky I’m too tired to cuss you out.” Soonyoung sighed, getting to his feet. “One day, I’m going to put my foot down for a natural-hair-color concept. But tomorrow...is not that day.”

“One day indeed. Sleep well, Soonyoung-ah.”

“Will do. G’night, Wonu.”

\---

"Baekseju? In the afternoon?" Soonyoung eyed the bottles already collecting condensation on the table as he slid into the small booth tucked in the back of the small restaurant. 

It was rare of Jeonghan to call him out for a meal on such short notice - the senior idol usually asked at least a few days in advance, being mindful of both their schedules. But Soonyoung had woken up to a text message blinking on his phone, asking if he was free to grab lunch sometime around two p.m. Since he was between promotion cycles, Soonyoung had enough down-time to convince a long-suffering Kihyun to allow him to pop out (“Just lunch! I’ll be back in two hours tops!”) before evening practices.

So here he was, looking askance at the extravagant alcohol placed prominently between Jeonghan and himself.

"Yes, baekseju." There was a strange glint in Jeonghan's eyes, something a little wild and fevered. "Because today, we are celebrating."

"Ooookay." Soonyoung arched an eyebrow, tucking his face mask into the pocket of his jeans. "Ten outta ten for the super-cryptic tone there, hyung. Exactly what are we celebrating?" 

"I’ll tell you after lunch; it’s the kind of news better appreciated on a full stomach."

The arrival of the galbisal and samgyeopsal platters was enough to distract from Jeonghan's odd behavior for a good thirty minutes or so. By the time Jeonghan began cracking open the seals on the baekseju bottles, it had all but slipped Soonyoung's mind. Picking up the shot glass Jeonghan had topped up, he raised it with the older idol as the blond cleared his throat. 

"To the newest addition of Starfield Entertainment!"

"To the newest addition of Starfield Entertainment," Soonyoung repeated, bemused.

"Yoon Jeonghan."

"Yoon- " Alcohol spilled over his fingers as Soonyoung jolted, eyes wide on the other idol who was nonchalantly sipping at his glass. "Wait, you joined _Starfield?_ "

"Yah, that’s expensive, Soonyoung-ah - don’t waste it like that. And yes, I switched companies. Or I will be switching over, once my contract with WhyG expires at the end of the month."

"Oh my god, did they - did you get offered a spot in their idol program?” Soonyoung put his glass down, baekseju forgotten. “That’s awesome-" 

“Actually, I won’t be joining Starfield as an idol.” Jeonghan looked entirely too calm, reclined against the back of the booth. "I signed on as an actor."

_What?_

"What?" All Soonyoung could do was goggle at his friend, mouth opening and closing as he processed what he had just heard. "Wait, what did you - okay, I might have heard wrongly, but you - did you just say you signed on as an _actor_?”

"Your ears are as good as ever, Soonyoung-ah.”

“But...your idol career?...”

A casual shrug. “I’m giving it up.”

Soonyoung’s brain blanked out. “But - ”

“Starfield offered me good terms, better than my current contract.” 

“But hyung - ”

“I'll have better accommodations, a better manager - oh, and actual income, believe it or not.” Jeonghan was still far too composed, refilling his glass and knocking it back in one smooth move. “No more money being funneled towards paying off training debts; Starfield agreed to clear the remainder of what I owe WhyG upon signing." 

“But…" Soonyoung was rarely at a loss for words, yet they seemed to evade him now as he struggled to piece his thoughts together. "Hyung, I mean...it _does_ sound good, but what about your singing - your _established_ idol career - "

"Yes, well, I suppose I won't be doing much singing anymore. I did read the contract thoroughly." Jeonghan's shot glass clinked where it was placed carelessly down on the table. "Still, it's not too bad a trade-off - I’d get way more advertisement deals, and my face deserves to be in cfs and on billboards, don't you think?"

"'Not too bad'?" The words he’d been grasping for earlier rushed back, bursting out of his mouth in a maelstrom of shocked incredulity. "The _fuck_ do you mean 'not too bad', hyung - you know this means you won't get to _sing_ anymore, or, or _perform on stag_ e! Or, or, fucking release an album or record songs - all that! All those years you spent building your career - what were you thinking??? Were you even _thinking_ , oh my god-"

"Soonyoung-ah." A painful grip around his wrist arrested the torrent of distress. "I know you don't intend to be mean. So I’m telling you now: hyung is going to be really fucking hurt if you go on like that."

Hurting Jeonghan was the last thing Soonyoung’d ever want to do, the words shrivelling into ashes on his tongue. For a while, the only sounds were that of the restaurant beyond their small booth, clinking cutlery and the drone of chatter filling the spaces between the two friends.

"Hyung." Was that small voice his? “Are you sure that’s what you want to do? I...I thought you _love_ singing."

"And I haven't had a decent promotional cycle in years. My releases aren't even ranking on Melon anymore, and my manager talks about more budget cuts when he thinks I can't hear him. Assuming there’s even a budget allocated to me at this point - you know my comebacks are becoming rarer and rarer." Weariness did not suit Jeonghan, a heavy and dull coat draped heavily over his narrow shoulders. "Starfield is the only offer I’ve gotten from anyone in the industry, and my contract is almost up - if I hold out for another company and nothing else turns up, who’s to say my idol career wouldn’t die anyway? Trying to remain as an idol doesn’t look sustainable in the long term, not if I want to stay in this industry. 

“And I can't leave, Soonyoung-ah - what would I even _do_ if I did?” 

A twist distorted the blond’s trademark smirk, turned it into something bitter. "You know as well as I do what a cutthroat world this business is. You, at least, can still afford to have some pride in your career, with the amount of success you command. But for the ones like me who never quite break out, we need to seize whatever opportunities we can before we become obsolete."

“Hyung.” He can’t cry, shouldn’t cry. Jeonghan would hate that; he had his own pride, and above all, hated to be pitied.

Still, Soonyoung was, had always been, overly emotional. Jeonghan probably realized how close his junior was to tears, because he smiled then, a sweet curve at odds with the dreary mood. "Besides, it's not like all my idol years will go to waste; my fanbase is small, but it's still there. Some will leave, I'm sure, but I'll still have some support, which gives me an edge over other rookie actors. Plus, I _am_ pretty; it would be a shame to not exploit these good looks while I’m still young. Don't you think I would make a great leading man, Soonyoung-ah?"

Soonyoung's voice, when it eventually squeezed past the constriction of his throat, was shaky but sincere. "You would be the best leading man, hyung."

"Aish, don't look so sad." Jeonghan’s earlier grip had loosened, long fingers reaching up to thumb at the corner of Soonyoung’s eyes, smudging the existence of tears away. "Yes, exactly this limpid baby-hamster look, stop it. God, your fans would kill me if they discovered I made their oppa all gross like this.”

“Shut up.” A shaky chuckle. “I’m not gross.”

“The grossest, really. Thank goodness I'm the one signing into Starfield - you’d never make it as an actor, broadcasting all your emotions like this. At least I know how to fake it like a pro. Maybe in time, I might even get to record a couple of OST songs - Soon Joong Ki got to do it after all, why not me? Before you know it, I’ll be more famous than you, Soonyoung-ah.” 

“Yah, now I don’t feel like supporting you anymore.” 

"Wow, the cheek of this dongsaeng, really.” Jeonghan flicked at Soonyoung’s bangs, and it felt just as it did everytime they had dinner together - warm and comfortable once more. “You don’t have to support me - Starfield will do that just fine. Just...”

A pause. When Jeonghan next spoke, it was quieter, vulnerable in a way he rarely ever was. “Just...don't think any less of me, alright?"

It was Soonyoung’s turn then to catch his senior’s hands, fingers rubbing circles into the thin wrists as his eyes crinkled. “You could never be less to me, perfect angel Jeonghannie-hyung.”

Jeonghan’s eyes grew suspiciously shiny at that. “Aish, look at this Hoshi, capturing hearts so easily.”

“Only because you captured mine first, hyung.”

“Okay, that’s quite enough mushy stuff for the two of us today - it’s going to ruin the meat sitting in our stomachs, and considering how expensive it was, that'd be a waste. Besides, now that I’ve gotten the announcement out of the way, there's more to this story that I've been dying to share." Jeonghan smirked, waggling his eyebrows at his friend. "Wouldn’t you like to know how exactly I got Starfield to offer me a contract?”

"Didn’t they didn't approach you with one?"

"We aren't all you, Soonyoung-ah - they didn’t approach me first. I - well, it _is_ quite the story, if I do say so myself."

“Well, I'm guessing you’re going to tell it to me whether I want to listen or not.”

“Damn straight. Remember that night when you called me about Starfield trying to poach you?"

"Right after my gym session, yeah."

"You mentioned that a 'Joshua' was the one doing the poaching. Which, funnily enough, also happened to be the name of the guy I'm kind of seeing on-off at the moment, who _coincidentally_ happens to work for Starfield. It seemed like a stretch, but South Koreans going by American names aren't all that common in corporate culture. So, I asked him point-blank about it after we were...done for the night. And what do you know, he was indeed _that_ Joshua."

"Wait.” Soonyoung held up a hand, brain stuttering to a stop for the umpteenth time that day. “Wait, are you saying what I think you're saying?"

"In my defense, his Grindr profile only - "

" _Grindr???_ "

"Don't worry, I used a fake name and one of those landscape profile pictures.” Jeonghan wriggled his fingers airily. “Anyway, what was I saying? Oh, right - his profile stated that he worked at Starfield, but not much past that. I didn't know he was actually high enough in the management team to run this type of recruitment."

"You slept with him and you didn't know???"

"We don't talk business in bed, alright? Confidentiality clauses and all that crap. Plus, we weren't exactly focused on meaningful conversations during the early weeks, if you get my drift."

"What, you, you just _rolled_ over after sex one night and asked him to offer you a contract at his company?" 

"Well, not quite, but something like that, yes."

Soonyoung couldn't quite stop gawking at Jeonghan. "So what you're saying is, you slept your way into a contract."

"Technically, we were already sleeping around prior to that, so it's not like I explicitly jumped him just to get a shot at a contract. I mean, you've seen him, right?"

Soonyoung spluttered. "Yes, but not _naked_."

"All that lean muscle and pectorals." Jeonghan's sigh was a little dreamy. "And _so_ considerate. He actually kept his promise to look into it for me; it was a bit tricky to evade my manager, but we managed to arrange a brief meeting with one of his colleagues. Plus, I still had to go for interviews, screen tests, the whole shebang before Starfield formally started negotiations. Do you know Shua was actually sorry that he couldn't pull me directly into his idol project? Couldn't get his superior to approve it, apparently. Kept apologizing for it until I, ah, induced him to babble something else instead."

" _Ewwww,_ hyung, _ewwww_. Now I'm going to have to mentally bleach my brain, thanks."

"He's a good man though. I know you think he's a bit intense, but I'm glad I swiped on him when I did." There was a rare fondness in Jeonghan's voice, a tone that was shyer, more affectionate than the words that had tumbled out of the ex-idol's mouth but minutes earlier. Perhaps Jeonghan was a little more attached than he was letting on, the carelessly-mentioned romps more than just simple fooling around. Still, the (would be) ex-idol deserved some privacy - if he didn't wish to share anything more with Soonyoung, Soonyoung wouldn't press.

He opted for a sly grin instead. "Guess there are going to be perks in moving to Starfield, huh?" 

"This brat - I think I preferred you when you were half-sobbing over my move. Either way, with me in their roster, you probably won't be seeing Starfield scouts around B.Net for a while. So, appreciate the favor I've done for you and help me finish this bottle of baekseju."

\---

The Idol Star Athletics Championship was, as Wonwoo had predicted weeks ago, a shit show.

One might wonder why that may be, given that in terms of participation, B.Net Entertainment was performing much better than expected. In a frankly astonishing turn of events, Wonwoo proved that he could indeed run, somehow managing to place third in the 50m track event. Mingyu made it to the finals of the fencing event, and Seokmin and Soonyoung took gold and bronze respectively in archery. Seokmin even pulled off a particularly impressive shot that broke the camera settled behind the bullseye, spurring an ‘#ArcherPrinceDK’ tag that would probably trend on Twitter for a couple of days.

No, B.Net Entertainment’s collective achievements weren't why the ISACs sucked. Nor was it because of the time-consuming schedule, as much as hanging around the Goyang Gymnasium all day was both tedious and tiring.

It was the interactions with other idols that had made this year’s ISAC a truly terrible one. And by 'interaction', Soonyoung really meant the sheer lack of it, particularly with one S.Coups. 

To begin with, the PMBL idol hadn’t represented his company in archery again this year, despite being the reigning champion in the event. That had dimmed the glow in Seokmin’s eyes a little when they heard the news.

That glow only continued to dull throughout the day, as attempt after attempt to approach Coups met with failure. And attempt they did - from casual walk-bys to deliberate approaches to almost-outright stalking, the B.Net idols tried it all. And yet, Coups somehow managed to evade meeting them in any form. So elusive was he that had they not seen him marching in with the PMBL contingent during the opening, and heard his name being called through the crackly PA system, Soonyoung would have assumed he wasn’t even in the stadium.

Then there was the waylaying - whether ISAC staff, junior idols or distracted cameramen, one or two of these always conveniently blocked or stopped the pair en-route to approaching Seungcheol. Undoubtedly some of these meetings were sincere greetings or born of a genuine desire to chat, but when the third junior idol seemed just as confused as Soonyoung about why they were conversing in the first place, it wasn't hard to suspect that an inexplicably intentional sabotage was underway. 

Things got to the point that Soonyoung was absolutely certain the PMBL idol was wilfully avoiding them. It was a conclusion he didn’t want to draw, seeing that it made absolutely zero sense - in all their previous interactions that Soonyoung had observed, Coups had exhibited nothing but fondness towards Seokmin. None of his previous behaviour had seemed contrived, and if something had happened since then to cause such a drastic attitude change, Seokmin (bless his heart) would have divulged it to Soonyoung much earlier. But Seokmin appeared just as befuddled, and a quick Internet search revealed no smear campaign on Dokyeom’s name to cause this type of rapid dissociation.

Even if his affection towards Seokmin had cooled, the veteran idol didn't seem the type to commit to this type of petty action. Yet, as Coups was somehow conveniently steered away from their ambush position to wave to fans for the fifth time, Soonyoung was willing to bet all the profits of his next comeback on a mysterious cold-shoulder neither of them deserved.

"Fuck this," he hissed at Seokmin, careful to keep his face relaxed and smiling as they waved goodbye to Red Velvet's Joy while walking back to the benches. "The fucker is obviously trying to avoid us."

"Hyung wouldn't do that." But there was a wobbly note in Seokmin's voice, minor enough to be unnoticeable except to all who knew him well.

“Look, this place isn’t big enough to evade us accidentally, especially when I’m deliberately doing my best to track him down. And I have amazing stalking skills, if I do say so myself.” Soonyoung slung an arm around his friend’s shoulder, squeezing it. “You’re really, really sure nothing happened between you and Coups-hyung? Like, accidentally or -”

Seokmin’s sigh was sharp and hard, so unlike him that Soonyoung’s step faltered, the idol almost stumbling at the abrupt stop Seokmin pulled. “Soonie-hyung. Just...let it go, alright? We’re not here to meet him, or - or do anything but play the sports we were assigned. And you know what? We’re actually doing pretty well today.”

“But -” 

“Please, hyung.” Seokmin’s face was still frozen in that bright smile he always wore in front of the cameras. “For me. Let it go.”

The media were going to have a field day with the number of photos they’d have to accompany their fluff articles about how close B.Net’s Dokyeom and Hoshi were. But Soonyoung couldn’t care less about them, pulling Seokmin into a comforting hug, arms tight around him in acknowledgement of his request.

“Hey, it should be Seungkwannie’s event soon. Wanna go cheer him on?” Without waiting for Seokmin’s agreement,he started steering the both of them towards the high jump area. “I mean, we know he’s not going to win, but it’ll be entertaining to watch him try to clear the - oh, don’t look now. It’s the gremlin.”

“The what?” Seokmin’s nose crinkled, discreetly trying to peer in the direction Soonyoung was scowling at. “Oh, Woozi-sunbaenim?”

“What’s he even doing here anyway,” Soonyoung muttered, pissed off all over again. “It’s not like he’s an idol - he can’t compete for PMBL. Bet he’d suck anyway, if he did.”

“Aish, don’t be mean, Soonie. Maybe he’s just here for support.”

“Who would willingly sit in this heat trap to support anyone?”

Seokmin snorted, sounding more like himself. “Uh, all the fans sitting in the bleachers?”

“...Ok, fair point. But they are different! Those are _fans_. This is a ‘genius’ producer who probably doesn’t have a good reason to be down here.” Soonyoung pursed his lips. “Unless he’s trying to hit on a female idol, maybe, which, dumb move - most of them are probably taller than him, hah.” 

“He _is_ close to Seungcheol-hyung, so maybe…”

“You know what, fuck that shit. I don’t care why he’s here, looking like some kind of under-fertilized radish.” That startled a giggle out of Seokmin, and Soonyoung pushed on, encouraged by this. “A mutated radish, but in, like, a failed way. No scientist would acknowledge him as an actual radish, that’s how under-grown he is. Heck, he’s so under-grown, they probably named the stunted-radish species ‘Woozi’-”

Seokmin’s jab against Soonyoung’s side broke the latter out of his rant long enough to realize the object of said rant was standing before them, hands in his pockets as he stared at them coolly. Depressingly, the ugly mustard-yellow tracksuit ensemble all the PMBL idols were decked in looked somewhat tolerable on him; if one didn’t know better, one might mistake him for an idol himself, with dark hair flopped over what were definitely judgemental eyebrows.

But thankfully, Soonyoung knew a lot better. Resisting the urge to glower in response to the silent scrutiny, he settled on a rigid smile instead. It took a second subtle jab for him to sketch out the compulsory bows with Seokmin, the polite greeting tasting sour on his tongue. 

Woozi didn’t seem to notice, his gaze inexplicably still resting on Soonyoung.

“Congratulations on the archery medals.” The crisp tone didn’t quite match the felicitations, and Soonyoung suddenly recalled beating out PMBL’s Baekho during the qualifying rounds. It was a satisfying memory.

“Thank you; I’m glad you were watching.” An idea popped into mind then, one that Seokmin would probably chew him out for later. But Soonyoung would be damned if he didn’t seize this opportunity to needle Woozi about Coup’s evasiveness. “It’s a shame we couldn’t compete against Coups-hyung, especially with him being the reigning champion in archery and all.”

Something flickered in Woozi’s expression. “He expressed interest in trying ssireum this year.”

“He does have the thighs for it, I guess. Still, I had been looking forward to watching Seokmin crush him.”

“Hyung!” Soonyoung’s toes throbbed where Seokmin had deliberately stepped on them. Above the belt, Seokmin’s head was ducked, his ears turning a tell-tale red. “We’re so sorry, Woozi-sunbaenim; Soonyoung didn’t mean to insinuate that I’d necessarily outdo Seungcheol-hyung.”

“You might have,” came the bland answer. “He’s been slacking off archery in favor of the gym anyway, so ssireum fits him better at the moment.”

“I don’t suppose,” Soonyoung continued breezily, feeling protected by the publicness of their setting, despite Seokmin’s increasingly tight grip on his forearm, “you would be able to bring us over to greet Coups-hyung? We’ve been trying to say hi to him all morning, but he seems too popular to track down today.”

Woozi’s hum was non-committal, the producer not even turning around to survey the gymnasium for his friend. “Sorry, I think he’ll be busy the rest of the day.”

Only the cheery announcement that the high jump event was starting and Seokmin’s forceful tug on his arm prevented Soonyoung from feeding Dispatch the scoop of an idol physically tackling a producer at a semi-public event. As it was, Soonyoung was dragged away, still sputtering at the bald-faced lie delivered to him with a straight face.

“I know it’s a lie. _I know_.” Soonyoung’s arm was rapidly losing blood-circulation; Seokmin’s strength was no joke. “But let’s not make a scene, okay? Please, hyung. For me? For your fans?”

“....For the fans,” Soonyoung agreed reluctantly, because he’d rather deck Woozi for Seokmin than restrain himself. “But the next time we meet in more private circumstances, watch me tear him a new one. Fat lot of good it is, being a hotshot a~mazing composer with that kind of shit attitude.”

“That’s the industry we chose to work in. But you already knew that, right? Now come on, we need to go support Seungkwannie - we can’t let him murder Mingyu when that beansprout ultimately makes a meme of him failing to clear the bar.”

\---

When Minhyuk came over with Kihyun to collect them at the end of the event, both managers were sporting minor variations of the same frown. 

"Hoshi-ah, Dokyeom," Kihyun started, then stopped, clearly weighing his words before he voiced them. "Is there something the both of you might like to inform us about?"

Soonyoung exchanged a befuddled look with Seokmin. "No?..."

"Are you absolutely sure? No problem, or scandal, or...or petty argument of some sort? Because there is -"

"Why did S.Coups' manager tell us that he was instructed not to allow any B.Net idols to approach S.Coups today?" 

"Minhyuk!" Kihyun swatted the other manager, who yelped and attempted to dodge the firm slaps dealt by the shorter man. “We agreed to broach this carefully!”

Both men were distracted long enough to miss the paleness that had suffused Seokmin's features at his manager’s words, his eyes widening minutely with shock.

Soonyoung, however, had noticed everything, immediately grabbing Seokmin's hand and squeezing it in support. Aloud, he asked, "What kind of fucked-up instruction is _that_? We definitely didn't do anything, hyung. You can check all you want, but I promise you’ll find nothing."

"That's what I thought. But we had to confirm it, just to be on the safe side. For all we know maybe one of you might have had a spat with him in private." Kihyun's eyes were shrewd. "Still, Dokyeom is a terrible liar - he would have leaked it to Minhyuk immediately if he had fought with his favorite idol."

"Well, with those kind of stupid instructions, he doesn't deserve to be Dokyeom's favorite anymore." Minhyuk had finally noticed his charge's unusual silence, reaching out to pat Dokyeom’s shoulder. "Right, Kihyun?"

"Maybe the kid didn't issue it himself. But Minhyuk's right - it's ridiculous. Changmin-ssi couldn't even give a logical-sounding reason for it. 'S.Coups needs to focus', my ass.” Kihyun grunted. “At least it’s only a personal thing though - we won’t have to worry about damage control."

"Hyung." Soonyoung was suddenly tired, of ISAC, of Coups, of the whole day in general. "Can we just go back to the dorms please?"

"Right. Minhyuk, I'll stay with these two - can you go round up Seungkwan, Mingyu and Wonwoo please?"

Seokmin stayed quiet the rest of the night - through the bundling into the company van, through the ride to dinner, through the drive home, he remained subdued, his normally-buoyant personality missing in his weak smiles and even weaker responses. It was impossible to be fooled by his poor attempts at normalcy, but the B.Net talents and the two managers with them were tactful enough to leave it be, giving the taboo topic a wide berth as they bantered about the socializing and sports events they did.

Even Soonyoung himself only tried once, during a particularly noisy moment at dinner. “Hey," he whispered, loading Seokmin's plate with slices of galbi. "Better to find out he was an asshole before you got more invested, right?”

Seokmin’s lips wobbled, and Soonyoung’s heart broke watching him. “Y-yeah, exactly.”

Seokmin's plate remained full by the time they left the bbq restaurant. That night, Soonyoung lay in aching silence as muffled sobs leaked out of the bunk below his. He could picture it; Seokmin’s knees curled to his chest the way he did whenever he felt vulnerable, blanket pulled over his head, face pressed hard against a pillow to prevent the sounds of sadness and heartbreak from waking Soonyoung up. Because of course Seokmin would be considerate, even in misery.

Every fiber of Soonyoung’s being begged him to climb down the tiny ladder at the foot of his bed and into Seokmin’s bed. But Seokmin wore his emotions out loud, until he didn’t. The minute Soonyoung showed any sign of being awake, the crying would abruptly stop, fading back into the same silence that had haunted the bedroom until Seokmin had assumed his friend was asleep.

So Soonyoung stayed in his bed, hating Woozi and Seungcheol with all his might throughout the sleepless night.

—-

“Hoshi-hyung?”

"Hmm?” Soonyoung paused in the middle of recording himself making dreadful faces in response to Jeonghan’s cringeworthy love declarations filtering over the recording studio’s speakers. A quick tap posted the video to the B.Net artists’ group chat, allowing the idol to give his full attention to the man seated beside him on the lumpy couch. “What is it?"

The8, or Xu Minghao, fidgeted in his seat, gnawing at his lower lip in a way that softened the sharp planes of his features. With his unstyled hair flopping in his eyes and loose clothing, he looked like the soft younger brother of the chic prince stage persona that demanded attention the minute he started to dance. 

Given that The8’s activities were primarily based in China, he was the last person Soonyoung expected to see in the small studio the Starfield dating sim application had commandeered for their recordings. Yet, when he and Mingyu had arrived (Mingyu for recording, himself to poke fun at Mingyu), the lanky idol had jumped to his feet, hurrying over to greet the two of them in accented Korean.

Internally, Soonyoung had to commend Joshua’s persistence. Minghao couldn’t have been an easy idol to pull on-board this project; while he was no S.Coups, The8 was no slouch himself in the K-pop industry, with the Chinese idol largely regarded to be amongst PMBL’s more successful talents. And if Soonyoung recalled correctly, The8 had not been tapped in the project during its proposal stage, which meant Joshua must have really pulled out all the stops to secure his participation.

In fact, Joshua might have made the smarter casting choice in gunning for The8 over S.Coups; not only did Minghao have decent appeal in South Korea, his true draw lay in his much larger and much more responsive fanbase in his home country. Bringing the Chinese idol into this project was a sure-fire way of ensuring its success internationally, at the very least.

Whatever strings he had pulled to secure this line-up, it proved that Joshua had a good head for strategy, stacking juggernauts with less famous, but equally appealing talents. No wonder Starfield hired him to front their start-up projects. 

Then again, Jeonghan was looking much happier these days. So perhaps Joshua was just a good man in general.

Minghao was obviously still struggling with what he wanted to say, an unusual action given that he’d long since lost the initial self-consciousness that had colored his conversational Korean around Soonyoung. While the Chinese idol was closer to Mingyu (with both of them being 97-liners), Soonyoung had formed a friendly camaraderie with the younger man over intense discussions about dancing techniques. 

“Is it something about Mingyu? Quick, spit it out before he gets back from the washroom. Pinky swear I won’t tell him if it’s unflattering.”

"‘Pinky swear’…? Oh no, it’s not - it's not about Mingyu. I just…” Minghao paused, eyes scrunched in concentration as he collected his thoughts. It was kind of cute. “I wanted to check, since I have been away from South Korea for quite a while. On music shows, do idols no longer visit their sunbae's waiting rooms in greeting? I’m not asking to be rude or demanding,” the idol hastened to explain. “I really just wanted to check so I don’t misstep. You see, I did a special stage on ‘The Show’ last week, and no one came by our dressing room to say hello. But my manager didn’t say anything about it, so I assumed things might have changed?"

“Ohhh, that.” Shrugging, Soonyoung slouched back against the sofa pillows. "Technically, you are still supposed to go around and greet your seniors, offer them your album if you have one. The new generation don't practice that much anymore though - maybe because they're too busy or tired to go around? Don't quote me on that; I'm mostly guessing myself. I still do the rounds to greet those more senior than me, but it's more habit than anything."

"Eh? But you were on ‘The Show’ last week as well, right? You didn't stop by our dressing room?"

Soonyoung snickered, amused at Minghao’s confusion. "Aish, did your time in China make you forget you're my junior? If anyone should be visiting dressing rooms, it should be you dropping by mine."

"But I was sharing a room with Coups-hyung, and he's your senior, isn't he?"

"Ah." Soonyoung's lips thinned, the earlier amusement dying a prompt death. "That was me doing Coups-ssi a favor, given how he recently seems quite intent on preventing B.Net idols from entering his holy presence. I greeted all the other seniors, except him."

"Eh? But I thought that Woozi-hyung's ban only applies to Dokyeom-ssi?"

"What?" Soonyoung jerked back upright as he turned to stare at Minghao. "What do you mean 'Woozi-hyung’s ban'?"

The sound producer loudly shushed them then, turning around to shoot both idols a look of patented disapproval as they mumbled apologies, heads low. The disruption unfortunately also gave Minghao enough time to reconsider what he had blurted out, the idol's eyes wide with consternation. “Oh no, I don't think I was supposed to say that out loud.”

It was difficult to moderate his pitch into something both soothing and mild when all Soonyoung wanted to do is shake the person beside him until the answers tumbled out. Still, he did his best to flatten the anger in his voice out into casual curiosity, reminding himself that Minghao was not at fault in any way and didn't deserve the brunt of his ire. "Minghao-ah, hyung's not mad at you or anything. I was just surprised, is all. In fact, if you don't mind elaborating, it would really help clear up some misunderstandings about why we haven't been able to greet Coups-ssi over these past few weeks."

Minghao looked unconvinced, fingers nervously shredding the tips of his fingernails as he clearly weighed the decision in his mind. So, Soonyoung whispered, "Besides, Dokyeom also has been confused about the whole - what is it, 'ban'? From approaching Coups-ssi? Which doesn't make any sense, because you know Dokyeom, right? That guy would rather jump into a pit of fire than shit-talk a senior. I can't imagine him doing anything bad enough for a _ban_ , can you?"

"It did seem very weird," Minghao admitted reluctantly in an undertone. "Because like you said, Dokyeom doesn't seem like a person who would cause others to become severely angry. Nevertheless, I assumed he must have some something terrible while I was away in China. While I was in the waiting room, I overheard Woozi-hyung give a directive to the security posted near our door to prevent Dokyeom from approaching Coups-hyung. It was very surprising; I've never heard Woozi-hyung do that before. He usually doesn’t interfere with this kind of matters."

"Color me surprised as well." But Soonyoung was miles away from surprise, rage whiting out his vision briefly. Fucking _Woozi_. Somehow, it always came back to that asshole. "Did Coups-hyung know about the ban?"

"I don't know - maybe? He wasn't in the room at the time. I suppose he must have known though, if it was for his own good."

"The8-ssi, Hoshi-ssi. If you must talk, please do so _outside._ "

The irritation written all over the producer's face, coupled with the inquisitive look Jeonghan shot him from inside the booth, was too much on top of everything Soonyoung had learnt in the last fifteen minutes. Suddenly, the recording studio felt too small, too stuffy, too _much_.

Standing abruptly, he bowed in apology to the producer. "Minghao-ah, could you please tell Mingyu later I had to leave early? Thanks."

Minghao looked caught in between a rock and a hard place, but managed a meek "okay, hyung". Not that Soonyoung heard it, stomping out of the studio and bee-lining to the B.Net building. With any luck, there'd be a soundproofed studio free where he could scream out all his frustration and fury without any judgemental looks cast his way.

It was that, or march straight into PMBL to punch Woozi square in the jaw and maybe start a brawl. And _,_ as much as Soonyoung would have liked to do just that, the action would risk not just his own career, but B.Net's reputation as well. 

Fuck it, Seokmin didn't deserve to be saddled with losers like Coups or Woozi anyway. There would be people miles better than those two, Soonyoung was sure of it.

Woozi wanted Coups to avoid Seokmin? Well, Soonyoung would ensure his best friend wouldn’t even _look_ in the other idol’s direction.

\---

"I see what you're doing."

"What _am_ I doing exactly?" Soonyoung effortlessly held his form, surveying himself critically in the wall-length mirrors as he completed a spin in time with the booming bass line echoing through the room. 

The reflection of Wonwoo huffed, arms crossed. "Don't play dumb. It's really fucking obvious that Seokmin's being steered away from S.Coups these days. What's up with that? Even Seungkwan's noticed; he asked me about it the other day."

Soonyoung arched an eyebrow, moving seamlessly through the routine he was experimenting with. "Sounds like something you should be taking up with Minhyuk-hyung, not me."

The music abruptly cut out, leaving the dance studio in ringing silence. The look Wonwoo levelled on Soonyoung was impressively flat, his hand still splayed out on the sound controls. "Please, I wasn't born yesterday. How did you get Minhyuk-hyung to veto all schedules that involved S.Coups, by the way?"

“Got Kihyun-hyung to do it.” Soonyoung finally dropped his arms, rolling his shoulders to loosen them. “I now owe him two weeks of coffee and one absolute-override over my decision in terms of my own activities.”

Wonwoo whistled. "A heavy sacrifice."

“It’s for the greater good. At least it’s too late for him to force me into that dating sim project. I think he still holds a small grudge over that.” Walking over to where Wonwoo was, Soonyoung dropped to sit cross-legged beside him. “Anyway, it wasn’t as if Minhyuk-hyung wasn’t already running his own version of ‘Avoid-S.Coups’ when it came to arranging Seokmin’s activities.”

“Yes, but Minhyuk-hyung is still a manager, first and foremost. There’s no way Seokmin’s schedule would suddenly be full enough to beg off ‘Mafia Game in Prison’ filming for a week, coincidentally when S.Coups was announced as the guest that episode.” Wonwoo shot him a sidelong glance. “Last I checked, you were still a full-time idol, not a part-time manager.”

“Well, I've decided that if Coups-hyung wants to avoid Seokmin, we'll give him what he wants."

"'I', huh. Not 'we'?" Wonwoo's tone was light, even if his words weren't. "Doesn't Seokmin get a say in this?"

"I try not to mention He Who Should Not Be Named in front of him. He thinks he's fooled me into believing he’s moved on, but last night? I had to listen to a ten-minute sleep-monologue on why he probably didn't deserve Seungcheol-hyung's attention. Oh, and a few muffled sleep-sobs. Can one even cry in their sleep?"

"Ouch."

Soonyoung didn’t bother to keep the terseness out of his voice. "Yeah."

"I meant the reference to Voldemort. Still…you’ve been kind of weird since you tagged along with Mingoo to that dating sim recording session. I’m guessing you must have confirmed that S.Coups is purposely avoiding Seokmin?”

“Yes.”

“Ah.” Wonwoo nibbled on his bottom lip. “I get it, what you’re trying to do. Just...think it over, alright? The way Woozi shouldn't be controlling S.Coups, you shouldn't be dictating Seokmin's life either. It’s his choice to make whether he wants to approach or avoid S.Coups."

"Fair enough. I'll stop interfering once he stops sleep-talking."

"...we have no idea when that'll stop, Soonyoung."

Soonyoung's eyes were hard when they met Wonwoo’s. "Exactly."

\---

Soonyoung wiped a listless finger through the last of the condensation on his empty beer glass. Did he have room for an extra serving of fried chicken? Or maybe another round of maekju, just to tip him over into the proper state of being inebriated. His diet wouldn’t thank him for it, but it was 1:30 a.m. and the swell of background chatter wasn’t doing much to dispel the melancholy which fatigue had woven over him a few hours ago.

The day’s schedule, for a non-comeback week, had been draining; while the interview and video shoot for a feature Marie Claire Korea was running on choreographers had been fun, it had also run overtime. Soonyoung ended up having to skip lunch in favor of rushing to the variety show he was guesting in. 

That shoot had been markedly less enjoyable, the idol struggling to jive with the humor of the hosts as he tried to clear the activities penciled in by the writers. It didn’t help that a couple of segments had to be reshot multiple times due to technical errors, and Soonyoung himself had fumbled while reading the prompter. The show would probably frame the errors as humorous, but Soonyoung hated making mistakes he knew were purely his own fault.

Still, at least the recording of the performance part had gone well, and an exhausted Soonyoung was finally able to say his thank-yous sometime around 1 a.m., dragging himself to a late-night bar to indulge in some chimaek before he headed home. 

Reluctantly deciding to stay sober for the walk back, Soonyoung stood up, tugging on his coat and pulling up his face mask before he shuffled to the cashier. Kihyun had been lenient enough to let him go off on his own after they left the filming location, only reminding him to be back at the dormitory before 3 a.m. and to not create a PR mess to wake up to the next day. Easy enough, the idol thought as he paid for his meal, exhaustion was a good enough damper on any motivation to go start a scandal. 

Besides, it felt like too much effort to go dig Woozi out from whatever hole he was hiding in just to sock him in the nose. As satisfying as the act would be, just thinking of the extensive damage control that would follow after was enough to tire Soonyoung out all over again. Was it possible to feel this decrepit at his age? He was an idol - definitely plausible.

The weight that crashed into his side as he turned to leave the establishment briefly cleared the glum fog over Soonyoung’s consciousness. It was immediately replaced with stunned disbelief as he registered exactly who had run into him.

Think of the devil, they say, and he shall appear.

For his part, Woozi looked just as startled, garbled apologies halting as he squinted up at Soonyoung, then down at the hand the other had instinctively thrust out to steady him. The brusque animosity he usually armed himself with around Soonyoung was nowhere to be seen; its absence made him seem younger, bolstered by how bewildered he looked. 

Then his eyes sharpened, and ah, there was the Woozi Soonyoung knew and loathed.

“Of course you’d be here. Of _course._ You’re fucking _everywhere_.”

...Or not.

Before Soonyoung could properly process that Woozi had cussed ( _cussed!)_ at him, a hand grabbed onto the front of his coat, tugging him forward. Caught off-guard, all the idol could do was stumble along in a desperate bid to keep his balance as he was forcefully, if clumsily, hauled past the noisy tables. The only thing preventing him from thinking of this as some kind of extraordinarily detailed drunken hallucination were the blooming aches on his thighs and legs where they bumped into chairs and tables, the pair moving through the crowd to what appeared to be the back of the bar.

Woozi only loosened his grip on Soonyoung's coat once the pair were standing (or swaying, in the producer's case) in the tiny back alley tucked between the row of shops. The idol immediately tugged the fabric free of the lax fingers, stepping back to put some breathing room in between him and Woozi. That he was angry was a given; not even Kihyun had the right to manhandle Soonyoung, much less Woozi. Still, he was regrettably sober enough to remember that he couldn’t afford to get on the bad side of one of the most reputable K-pop music producers in South Korea.

Still, it was an almost herculean task to moderate his voice into something resembling reasonableness. “What the f- is there something you had to talk to me abou-”

“Can’t I get a fucking break, really?” Woozi steamrolled right over Soonyoung’s carefully-moderated sputtering, marching right back into the idol’s space. “Do you have to make it so fucking _hard_ ? I’m trying my damndest to kill this stupid infatuation, but you’re just so fucking hot and fucking everywhere apparently - on my radio,” a hard poke to Soonyoung’s chest, “on my television,” another poke, “on the _fucking subway._ ” Only Soonyoung’s hands gripping Woozi’s prevented another hard jab. “Do you know how many times I’ve looked at your fucking smile on the billboard along Yeongdong-daero? _Too many_ fucking times, which really isn’t helping this fucking crush. _God_ , Cheol’s gonna laugh me out of my damn apartment if he finds out I’m still this stuck on you.”

He was wasted, Soonyoung realized, staggering as Woozi leaned heavily against his front, cheek squashed up against the wool of Soonyoung's sweater. Drunk, or at the very least, extremely tipsy. The glassiness of his eyes should have given it away, or the unusually dark flush staining his skin. Or the slur in his usually crisply articulated voice, blurring the words together. Or the uncharacteristic touchiness.

In his defence, Soonyoung had been too preoccupied with feeling incensed at getting sworn at and being physically dragged outside to initially notice all these things. 

At some point, Woozi had moved on to ranting something about his ‘stupid laugh’ and ‘warm fuzzies like fucking heartburn’. It was almost funny, the idol mused, how powerful alcohol could be - here was the one person who despised Soonyoung as much as Soonyoung did him suddenly spouting elaborate (if profanity-ridden) love declarations out of nowhere. Soonyoung really should record this on video, maybe blackmail Woozi with this the next time the producer decided to be an asshole to him or Seokmin.

It was a pity both his hands were still stuck holding Woozi’s wrists, keeping the latter from trying to grasp Soonyoung’s arms. The idol sighed, making a second game attempt to get rid of the producer.

“Uh, Woozi-ssi, we should go back in, maybe find the people you came here with - you _did_ come with someone, right? Hey, hey, stop that _-_ ”

“Told myself a scandal with you wouldn’t be worth it. You’re an _idol_ , for fuck’s sake, it’d never work out. But you - _so damn irresistible._ Even when you bite back. God, wish you’d bite me.” Uncoordinated fingers were still trying their best to curl themselves into the front of Soonyoung’s sweater, despite being held fast in Soonyoung’s grip. 

Then Woozi started leaning in, and Soonyoung panicked, pressing Woozi’s hands to the producer’s chest so he could keep him at arm’s length.

“Woozi-ssi, you need to _stop_. You’re _drunk._ You hate me, remember?”

“Hmm?” Woozi resembled a pigeon with how his head was tipped to one side. It was almost laughably cute. “Hate you? Have never hated you. Could never. Hated myself for liking you, Cheol for egging me on, but never you. I tried, but s’hard to.”

Unfortunately for Woozi, the mention of Seungcheol’s name triggered the reminders of why exactly Soonyoung abhorred Woozi. The idol’s expression instantly hardened, the rage he had fought so hard to suppress earlier reigniting with a passion. “Well, _I_ hate you.” His conscience (sounding uncannily similar to Kihyun) yelled at him to stop before he ruined his career, but the combination of pent-up ire, Soonyoung’s natural impetuousness and _just_ enough liquor silenced that sensible little voice. “For messing with Dokyeom’s happiness and crushing the heart of one of the sweetest people on earth. You forced Seungcheol-sunbaenim to break off all contact with Dokyeom, didn’t you?”

“Of course I did.” Even drunk, Woozi didn’t hesitate to answer, looking quizzical. “Because Dokyeom-ssi would be bad for Cheol-ah.”

“You do NOT get to fucking decide that, you presumptuous piece of shit!” Soonyoung hissed in the producer’s face. “That’s for _them_ to decide, not _you_ . Thanks to your fucking meddling at ISAC, Dokyeom fucking cried his eyes out multiple times! And now we have two Dokyeoms: Public Dokyeom who smiles and laughs like nothing’s wrong, and Fucking Miserable Dokyeom at night when he thinks of your fucking dumbass friend! Oh, he thinks we don’t know, but he fucking talks in his sleep, and it’s almost always him _apologizing_ for whatever mysterious offense he’s apparently caused Seungcheol!” The breath Soonyoung drew in was as shaky as his fists, trembling where they were clamped around Woozi’s wrists. “Just. Fuck, he deserves so much _better_ than you, your fucking attitude and definitely Seungcheol who clearly doesn’t know a good thing if it hit him in the damn face. So you know what? Fuck Choi Seungcheol, and fuck _you._ ”

Woozi’s confusion was starting to transform into anger as well, the redness sitting on his cheeks more than just inebriation now. “You don’t get to talk to me like that - ”

“I can, and I damn well will! “Soonyoung shoved him backwards, breathing hard. “Also, you - you treated Vernon like shit! He’s a fucking adult who’s unfortunate enough to work under you - he doesn’t need someone dictating his fucking clothes and acting as if he were subhuman or illiterate. But you don’t care about that, do you? Too much talent overrides basic human politeness, huh? Fuck off with your drunken confessions, Woozi. There is nothing, _nothing_ you could possibly say that would cause me to reciprocate your feelings in _any_ way.”

“Woozi-sunbaenim? Are you - oh! You are busy? I can come back later?” 

The tentative voice, coming from a petite woman who quailed under the twin stares levelled in her direction, sliced through the brewing tension like a knife. With massive effort, Soonyoung swallowed his anger once more, sketched the shortest bow he could get away with to the newcomer, and turned on his heel to walk along the alley to its exit. Whoever the woman was, let her handle Woozi - he’d be damned if he did anything more for the producer.

Instead of heading home, Soonyoung diverted towards the gym, pulling out his phone to inform Kihyun of his updated plan. He was too riled up to sleep anyway, and an hour on the treadmill would dull the edge of his impetuous anger, as well as make up for the night’s snacking.

If the memory of Woozi’s livid face as Soonyoung verbally tore into him motivated Soonyoung to beat his personal distance record, no one but him needed to know.

\---

The next morning (and a few short hours of sleep) brought more clarity, and with it a mounting sense of horror combined with a generous sprinkling of dread. Neither he nor Woozi had been quiet in their ‘spat’, and while the back alley had been empty, only thin walls of questionable soundproofing had separated them from the patrons inside the restaurant, and the other restaurants along that block. 

If someone had heard, or worse, gotten pictures of the two of them arguing, the paparazzi would have a field day. And, no matter how Soonyoung looked at it, he would definitely come out on the worst end of a scandal should one crop up. PBML was one of the Big Three; the clout they wielded in the industry far outweighed B.Net, and Soonyoung. Not to mention they had better connections - the idol could already imagine the cancelled appearances as show after show dropped him in order to play nice with Woozi and PMBL.

And Woozi, oh god, he had fought with _Woozi_. As much as the man may deserve whatever Soonyoung had yelled at him, angering one of South Korea’s most acclaimed producers was a downright asinine move. There were plenty of assholes in the K-pop industry, but any idol worth their salt knew that it was better to bottle up resentment rather than risk pissing off influential people who could easily tank already-tenuous careers. 

Soonyoung had gone further than simply pissing off Woozi; he had done pretty much everything short of throwing punches. He’d insulted and cussed at him, then stomped all over what - to his increasing chagrin - had apparently been a confession.

He didn’t even have the excuse of being drunk like Woozi had been. 

(Never before had he regretted staying relatively sober as much as he did now though. Drunk-Soonyoung had questionable memory the morning after. Sober-Soonyoung, unfortunately, couldn’t say the same.

_Hate you? Have never hated you. Could never._

Mingyu scowled at where Soonyoung had smushed his face into one of the couch pillows. “If you must scream, could you do it in your room, hyung? I’m trying to watch ‘The Arthdal Chronicles’ here.”)

The week following what Soonyoung had come to refer to as ‘That Night’ was excruciating, the idol constantly on edge in anticipation of some kind of fallout: a Dispute scandal, a lawsuit of some sort, mysterious cancellations of his schedules, some kind of block that Woozi would be able to achieve with his industry connections. The uninterrupted mundaneness of the passing days only drove up his manic energy, to the extent that Kihyun commented on it, frown knitting his eyebrows together.

“You look like you’re about to jitter right out of your skin. Calm down; it’s only a radio show. What’s got you so nervous?”

“Ahaha, I’m just excited, that’s all! Say, hyung,” Soonyoung asked, faux-casual, hands pressed down on his left knee to stop it from bouncing restlessly. “I don’t suppose I’ve appeared on any gossip sites lately?”

“No…?” Kihyun squinted suspiciously at his charge. “Why, what did you do?”

“Nothing, hyung!” the idol chirped. “I was just curious, haha. Oh hey, I think they’re calling for me into the studio now, gotta go.”

Typing ‘Woozi’ and a combination of ‘angry’, ‘pissed off’ and ‘mad’ into Google and Naver didn’t shed any light on what the producer was like when incensed. That he would be enraged, Soonyoung had no doubt - what was unclear was how the music producer would retaliate.

The closest he got to a result online was an interview with Seungcheol on Radio Star. “He has a terrible temper.” Seungcheol laughed with the show hosts, a tiny cartoon in the corner depicting Woozi as some kind of volcano spewing lava. “No, really! Hyung is usually super-patient, but when he gets angry, he really explodes. I definitely avoid making him mad at all costs, and generally advise everyone else to do the same.”

Soonyoung had shuddered, closed the link, and spent another sleepless night being plagued by images of Woozi single-handedly destroying his career. 

Yet, for all of Soonyoung’s fears, nothing happened. The days passed quietly, rolling into another week, and little by little, the fear in the idol’s gut untangled tentatively. 

Maybe Woozi was one of those drunks who forgot what they did or said under alcoholic influence. Plus, Soonyoung had been wearing a mask to hide his identity, rendering the both of them no different from any other common, brawling drunkards in South Korea - and thus not worth any real attention. 

The more time trickled by, the more likely this explanation appeared to be the truth. Soonyoung slowly started to breathe easily again, thanking his lucky stars.

That is, until he strolled into the lobby of their dormitory’s block one evening, and saw Woozi sitting on one of the benches close to the lifts. 

Oh fuckity _fuck._

“Woozi-ssi.” His greeting bow was stiff, arms locked at his side as he frantically hustled up the most amiable inflection he could muster. “Were you looking for someone?”

Both the producer’s eyebrows rose in wordless incredulity, and Soonyoung suppressed a wince. 

“...right. Yes. Have you been waiting long?” 

Despite what past-Seungcheol had said, Woozi did not look like he was on the verge of exploding. Beneath the bill of his cap, his face looked deceptively unperturbed. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Listen, before you say anything, I want to express how sorry I am, sunbaenim-” Reflexes long honed by dance practices halted Soonyoung from bowing right into a small paper envelope, held out by a thin, pale hand. 

“Please, before you apologize, read this.”

“Um.” Soonyoung took the envelope automatically, then balked. What if he was currently holding some kind of court summons? Or contract termination papers? Wouldn’t those have to be delivered through Kihyun, rather than Woozi himself? 

“Uh, Woozi-sunbaenim? What exactly is -”

Woozi bobbed his head in a quick nod, striding briskly out the glass doors before Soonyoung could finish his question. The idol could only stare at his retreating figure, utterly bewildered as he clutched the envelope.

\---  
  


_Dear Hoshi,_

_I thought of explaining all this in person but_ ~~_we'll probably end up fighting again_ _I’m shit at_~~ _I’m clearly not the best at face-to-face_ ~~_confrontations_ ~~ _communication. In fact, it's probably_ ~~_my awkwardness_ ~~ _this inadequacy that_ ~~_has made you hate me_ ~~ _led to me having to write this in the first place. I'm supposed to be an acclaimed song-writer with dozens of lyrics to my name; with any luck, these writing skills will help me better clarify some things I think you might have misunderstood about me._ ~~_this is so hard to write though fuck_ ~~

_Obviously I must seem like quite the asshole to you (please forgive the crude language; I want to convey my thoughts as honestly as possible). I don’t expect this letter to excuse me in any way, but you seem to be a person who values truth, so I will do my best to lay my explanations out as honestly as possible._ ~~_I hope_ _._ ~~

_Firstly, I don’t hate you. I could never hate you. What I said that night, however drunk or rude I was (sorry for that, by the way), was the truth. In fact, I’ve_ ~~_admired_ _been infatuated with_ _adored_~~ _liked you for a long time now. It might sound pretty unbelievable, especially given how my behaviour towards you must have seemed rude or curt, but that was not my intent at all. For all my song-writing skills, I’ve never been great at small talk or making conversation. Add my crappy attempts at repressing my attraction to you into the mix, and you have the gist of my lousy behavior over the past few months. I tried my best not to fall for you, not because I think of you as lesser in any way; on the contrary, I consider you one of the most professional idols I’ve known. Professional enough to know that idols like yourself are strongly discouraged from dating, if not outright banned from it. I couldn’t picture you flouting this rule just to humor my shitty attempts at trying to date you. So I tried to kill off my interest in you instead. If my harshness of speech ended up putting you off me as a person_ ~~_because im an idiot_ ~~ _, that was 100% not my intention. I only meant to kill my own interest in you, not make you view me as scum. You can ask Seungcheol to verify this: he knows of my crush on you, and teases me about it incessantly._

 _Speaking of Seungcheol, you were right - it isn’t really my place to interfere with his relationship with Dokyeom. But I did it anyway because I worry too much over my friends. You see, Seungcheol has been interested in Dokyeom for some time now; his attraction to your labelmate only grew during the few interactions they’ve had together. But as I observed these interactions, it seemed to me that Dokyeom, while friendly, didn’t reciprocate Seungcheol's feelings romantically. Comparing the similarities between how Dokyeom acted on-air and how he behaved with my closest friend only confirmed my suspicions. Or so I thought. Thus I drew the_ ~~_dumbass_ ~~ _incorrect conclusion that Dokyeom wasn’t as invested in Seungcheol as Seungcheol was in him._

 _For all his tough exterior, Seungcheol can be pretty sensitive and has a terrible tendency towards moping_ ~~_like an idiot_ ~~ _. And I think you can understand wanting to protect the real friends we have - we don’t get many in our world. So I moved to prevent him from further falling for Dokyeom before Dokyeom could get around to breaking his heart. I did issue the orders to Seungcheol’s manager and staff to keep Dokyeom away from him; Seungcheol himself had never properly gotten Dokyeom’s SNS contact, and it was easy enough to distract him with busy schedules. I’m also guilty of telling him not to overthink Dokyeom’s ‘friendly’ regard for him as romantic in any way._

 _It wasn’t until you told me how your friend reacted that I finally understood that I had misinterpreted Dokyeom’s behavior quite catastrophically. For that, I am truly very sorry. This was all solely my fault; Seungcheol was never informed of the restricted access, and I’m willing to bet that his reticence is because he assumed I was correct in telling him Dokyeom was not into him. Right after I send this to you, I’ll personally explain everything to him in detail._ ~~_RIP myself_ ~~ _~~.~~ I have also retracted any ‘ban’ instructions I’ve placed on Dokyeom before I sat down to write this. These actions cannot fix everything that has happened, nor can it make up for the anguish your friend has suffered, but I promise to do my best to make amends for the damage done. _

_As for Vernon (or Hansol), I was specifically instructed to be extra-strict on him by his own father, who is the Head of Marketing at PMBL. Essentially, Hansol’s current position is a product of nepotism - my own pick of interns was overridden in order to hire him. He is indeed a sound engineering major, as he may have told you, but he only switched to this major last year. His knowledge on sound equipment is_ ~~_kinda crap_ ~~ _not good enough for me to fully trust him with the studio’s expensive equipment yet, hence why he runs more menial tasks for now._

 _Another more pressing reason for my strictness with him is this: he’s not a bad kid, but his attitude is decidedly American on certain topics. This is not a problem in and of itself, but he has a fondness for smoking joints back in the States, a habit his father is trying to get him to kick. Worse still, I have it on good authority that he managed to smuggle marijuana in. However, I have no idea where it is; likewise, I cannot just demand he show me where it is, since he will definitely deny having it. Either way, you know how strict our laws are on drugs; should he one day be caught with anything on hand, it would be disastrous if PMBL’s idols are associated with him in any way. So, if I cannot force him to dump his marijuana, I can at least limit his interactions with the idols. I don’t want to interfere with your decisions, but I recommend you_ ~~_avoid_ ~~ _be careful around Hansol as well._

 _As for regulating his dress code, I confess this was a personal issue: to put it simply, his fashion sense pained me._ ~~_It’s hideous._ ~~ _I thought it might also be due to his American upbringing, but he is_ ~~_a fashion terrorist_ ~~ _somewhat unprofessional in his choice of clothing. Given that he works with me, I thought it prudent to ensure he didn’t draw too much attention to himself, and subsequently, me. His Instagram handle is @chwenotchew if you want a better idea of what I had to put up with before I put my foot down - the third picture is what he wore to the office on his first day of work. The red sunglasses weren’t that bad, but the tie-dyed hoodie and slippers-with-socks combination were too much. Perhaps I’m old-fashioned, but there are office dress codes for a reason._

 _I hope this answers the charges laid against me. Strangely,_ ~~_I still like you too much_ ~~ _it has been somewhat a relief to write this all down._ _~~Perhaps writing really was the best way to go about this after all.~~ _ _What you do with this letter is up to you, but for the sake of everyone mentioned in this letter, I would really appreciate it if you keep its content for your eyes only._

 _My last confession is this: it seems that, try as I might, it is impossible to stop_ ~~_loving_ ~~ _liking you. For this, I do apologize. Since this idea is distasteful to you, I will take steps to ensure it at least doesn’t intrude on you more than it already has. My only request_ _~~if possible, is that you do not avoid me~~ _ ~~_but I hope you understand_ ~~ _is for this not to jeopardize any future working relationships or collaborative partnerships we may have._

_I wish you all the best._

_Lee Jihoon_

\---

“Soonyoung-ah.”

A muffled groan was the only reply Wonwoo received, followed by rhythmic thumping. The bespectacled man huffed in exasperation from where he was peeking in at the doorway.

“Look, we all have bad days - I get it. But you’ve been hitting your head against the wall for the _past ten minutes_ and some of us, myself included, need to sleep. You know, that precious commodity we rarely get? Please, for all our sakes, stop.”

“Wonu, why am I so _dumb_?” 

“Well, your fans certainly don’t love you for your high IQ.” Wonwoo peered at the bundle of blankets huddled against the wall, lethargic irritation sluggishly morphing into concern. “Hey, is everything okay?”

A long silence followed, the lump of blankets stilling where it was on the bunk bed. Wonwoo exhaled audibly.

“Alright. Stay put. No head-banging please.”

The door had barely closed behind Wonwoo’s figure when he returned, pulling along with him a befuddled Seokmin, cup noodles clutched in one hand, a fork in the other. 

“Here.” The older idol tugged Seokmin over to the bed, carefully pushing him towards the blanket-lump of Soonyoung. “Vent it out to Seokmin. Stop killing your brain cells. Good night.”

With that, he left the bedroom. Seokmin, still holding the cup of noodles, blinked up at Soonyoung.

“Um. Is this some kind of hidden camera video?”

“Seokminnieee.”

At the plaintive snuffle of his name, the cup noodles were immediately set down on the floor, Seokmin climbing into the upper bunk properly to gently encircle his friend with the kind of hugs only he could give. It was one of his greatest assets, outside his vocal abilities: an incredible empathy and kindness, freely given to those he loved without expecting anything in return.

And so Soonyoung selfishly settled into Seokmin’s warm embrace, allowing his friend to pet his hair softly as he agonized internally over the revelations Woozi had heaped onto him unasked.

And revelations they were indeed, much to the idol’s dismay. Soonyoung was a stubborn man, but even he had to admit that, try as he might to discredit them, Woozi’s explanations made sense. 

Vernon was handsome and amiable, but Soonyoung didn’t know the intern beyond the cafe conversations they had had. Rather than question if Vernon had done anything to provoke the curt treatment he received (as he should have, at least once), he had carelessly allowed their weekly conversations to further aggravate his prejudice against Woozi. Maybe he'd even wanted it that way, looking for more reasons to despise someone he _already_ disliked.

Worse still were the wrongful claims Woozi had made against Seokmin, Soonyoung’s dearly beloved Seokmin with a heart of gold who deserved all the best things in the world. Seokmin, who wore his emotions freely on his sleeve - except the ones which mattered most. It was a trait that endeared him to his fans and friends alike, but that could easily mask much deeper feelings. It was a good skill for idols to possess - one he had, unconsciously or otherwise, honed into a part of his sunny personality. 

The problem with smiling for everyone, however, was that _everyone_ saw you smiling at everyone else. How then did one determine if the smile aimed at them was softer than the others? Fonder than the one shown to the public? Without knowing Seokmin intimately, differentiating between the two would be close to impossible.

Hell, even Jeonghan had commented on it before, hadn’t he? He’d questioned the extent of Seokmin’s pining for Seungcheol, despite being counted as one of Seokmin’s close friends. It unfortunately then wouldn’t be farfetched to imagine a stranger falsely assuming Seokmin’s advances to be merely friendly, without any proper insight into how the man actually was. Was it possible to be so vibrant a personality that one couldn’t tell the difference between platonic and romantic affection? Apparently, according to Woozi, it was.

It didn’t make what he did with Seungcheol right, but Soonyoung had to unfortunately concede that he understood the motive behind the act.

Which then led to the realization that Soonyoung himself was also in the wrong. Instead of looking for a rational explanation for the whole mess, Soonyoung had reacted by doing exactly what Woozi had. He had yelled that it wasn’t for Woozi to interfere with Seungcheol and Seokmin’s relationship - but hadn’t Wonwoo said pretty much the same thing to _him_ about Seokmin?

So if Woozi was an asshole, Soonyoung was just as much of an asshole. And wasn’t that a distressing thing to recognize about oneself at two in the morning?

Oh god, not only was he an asshole, he was an asshole who had trampled all over Woozi’s love confession, ripping it to shreds based on a series of wrongly formed assumptions.

“Minnie, why am I such an asshole?”

“Aigooo, is that what’s gotten you so worked up?” Seokmin cooed, tugging lightly on Soonyoung’s ear. “You are a bit of an ass, but not an asshole, hyung.”

“I am, the biggest, the worst, the lousiest asshole ever.” Soonyoung sighed dismally, curling even closer into his friend, who obligingly wriggled around to accommodate him. “And you are a literal angel, Seokminnie, but you need to show more obvious signs when you like someone.”

“...huh?”

“No, really, you should just tell people when you have a crush on them. Like “hi, I love you, please date me” to their faces. None of these passive friendly approaches like blushing and stuttering and shit - if you like them, you should just tackle them, straight up.”

Seokmin had stiffened slightly; Soonyoung would have missed it, were he not practically clinging to the other man like a koala. Concealment honed into a veritable art, he lamented again internally. He could already picture Seokmin mentally sidestepping that comment as the latter gently said, “Aigo, grandma, have you gotten so old that you don’t make sense any more? C’mon, s’time to you to sleep - you’ve got that interview to go to at seven, right? And you don’t want your tiger eyes to become more panda-like, yeah?”

Slowly, Soonyoung allowed Seokmin to carefully settle him back into bed, his mouth firmly shut about all the recent knowledge he had acquired about Coups. There had been far too many revelations in one night already. Adding another wouldn’t do him or Seokmin any favors at the moment, even if his best friend deserved to know the truth about what had happened during that terrible period of promotions.

He’ll tell him eventually, Soonyoung promised himself as Seokmin tiptoed out of the room, only popping back to retrieve his forgotten supper. Tomorrow, he’d have to talk to Minhyuk, or get Kihyun to do it, in order to quietly revoke the avoidance of S.Coups in terms of Seokmin’s activities. Either manager would ask about the sudden change, and Soonyoung would tell them...he would tell them…

God, he didn’t know what he’d tell either of them, he realized, groaning internally. Fuck, running interference had been a stupid decision. With any luck, he could just promise Kihyun another absolute-override and beg the manager to handle it with the finesse he possessed.

That was one thing down. It still left Soonyoung with enough thoughts swirling through his head to promise a long sleepless night. 


	3. Act Three

BUGS! Hard to Meet Person #3 Interview - WOOZI

 _Your most recent work was a collaboration with Bumzu on NU’EST's single 'Love Me', which combines R &B and house elements with a romantic ode. What inspiration did the two of you draw on in creating this song?_ _  
_W: Blending the sounds of house music with an R &B groove was initially an experiment [Bumzu and I] tried when testing out PMBL studios’ new equipment; we were pleasantly surprised by the results and decided to further develop it into a full song. When writing the lyrics, I thought it would be good to convey the message of how one should be more honest when in love in their own direct, yet rhythmical way. Relationships are about taking risks to possibly grow that relationship - I wanted to convey this in a light-hearted way by creating a repetitive chorus that comes across as playful but earnest. Thankfully, the NU’EST members were happy with the end result. 

_Is there more pressure on you when you're in the process of working on an album, rather than a single release?_ _  
_W: Song or album, there will always be some sort of pressure of wanting your work to be received well and be successful. Of course, I cannot claim sole credit - I'm only responsible for the music. The music video, the dance choreography, all of that is the hard work of others. So maybe it's more accurate to say everyone involved in the creative process shares the same sense of pressure, of wanting what we have collectively created to strike a chord with the audience. Ah, but all that being said, it is naturally more stressful to work on an album, compared to a single. (laughs)

 _How long does it take to finish recording a single track?_ _  
_W: It really depends on the singer. For instance, S.Coups and I finished recording (his mini-album) 'MANSAE' in about four hours. That's how comfortable we've gotten with each other's working style over time; his debut album took us over twenty four hours at the beginning of his career.

 _For all your accolades as one of South Korea's best K-pop producers, you're relatively young. Do you ever feel weighed down by expectations others may have of you?_ _  
_W: There are always high expectations of me, but I try to approach them positively rather than being afraid of trying to live up to my fame.

 _If you could go back in time and give advice to your younger self who had just started producing music professional, what would it be?_ _  
_W: Actually, if I could, I would choose to advise the ‘me’ of last year. I would tell myself to be more open-minded to the differences in the creative processes of different people. For instance, I am embarrassed to admit that I used to be quite skeptical of self-producing idols. I thought it was mostly media play hyped up for promotions, which to me, cheapened the efforts of those who actually worked on creating and producing music. In actuality, these idols make time in their demanding schedules to actively contribute to the composing process - they put in a lot of effort to be authentic in their music, and I respect that. I only wish I had realized this earlier; I believe I would have been a better producer for it.

 _Then would you say you prefer to work solo now, or collaboratively?_ _  
_W: Frankly, there are advantages and disadvantages to both approaches. These days, I find myself appreciating input from others, especially the singers I'm producing for. They naturally have a lot of concerns beyond just the music alone, such as their current image and how would they like to appear on stage. The track then becomes more of a fully sensory experience, rather than just an auditory one. While it is tricky to find time to sit down and brainstorm with them, having them contribute to the production process makes it more personal, and really helps guide me in the direction they want their music to go.

 _Are there any specific people you'd like to work with in the future?_ _  
__W:_ Sunmi-noona, definitely. Her musical style will really challenge mine, and I feel like the result might be interesting. I'd like to work with Hoshi as well, if he were interested. He is an idol who is quite involved in the creative process of his music and favors bold EDM-type songs. The product of our collaboration might be exciting, don’t you think? (laughs)

 _Have you ever thought of releasing your own songs as a singer?_ _  
_W: I wouldn’t deal very well with the scrutiny that comes from being a performer; I am a person who enjoys his privacy too much. Soundcloud is good enough for now.

\---

“Alright, I’m making an executive decision: we’re taking a break.”

“Hyuuuung,” Soonyoung whined into the microphone, pulling a face at Junhui through the recording booth’s window. “We need to get this done.”

“Well, that too, but we’ve been trying variations on this for the past hour, and it’s not getting done.” Junhui matched Soonyoung’s look with a pout of his own. “I think your voice is becoming scratchy anyway. So, we take a break, get something to drink, and think a little more about how to fix that bridge along the way. Win-win situation, yes?”

“One more go, at least?”

“No~ope.” Junhui was already fiddling with the switches of the sound boards, the tiny rows of lights flickering off. “It wasn’t working before, it won’t magically work now. We need a new tweak; maybe lyrics, maybe the melody, who knows? Let’s go, I need more idea-juice in me before we continue.”

“You mean caffeine, hyung.” But Soonyoung was already pulling off the headphones, looking forward to the brief respite. The Chinese music producer was a little eccentric, but he was easy to work with, receptive to whatever Soonyoung offered him, and was excellent at what he did. If he declared they needed to stop for a bit, he was usually right.

“Same thing.” Junhui waited until all the equipment were properly powered down before he grabbed his wallet, waving it at Soonyoung. “C’mon, I’ll treat you today.”

“Awww yes! Hyung is the best!”

“Yeah, yeah, let’s see if you’ll be singing the same tune later when I make you re-record that bridge another fifty times.”

At Junhui’s insistence, they bypassed the small cafe they usually frequented in front of the B.Net building; apparently there had been a particularly good one making the rounds on Junhui's various social media feeds. It was a bit of a walk away, but neither man noticed the distance much, both mentally wrestling with the problematic bridge they had been working on earlier as they strolled along the quiet street. 

Soonyoung was considering telling Junhui to scrap the bridge entirely, when Junhui piped up, “Oh hey, isn’t that the PMBL building?”

It was; large and sleek, it loomed over the pair, dark glass glinting in the evening light. Perhaps its association with a certain music producer rendered it more foreboding than a typical office building; a shiver that had nothing to do with the twilight weather ran up Soonyoung’s spine as he stared at the entrance. 

Unfortunately, Junhui didn’t share the same sentiment.

“One of my friends said I should come by and check out the speakers they've installed in all their sound booths. According to him, it improved the audio quality by leaps and bounds.” Already, long fingers were dancing across Junhui’s phone’s keypad. “Lemme see if he’s around to give us a short tour.”

Soonyoung whipped his head around at that, stricken with a strange trepidation he couldn’t quite lend voice to. “B-but hyung, we _can’t_.”

“Of course we can - it’ll just be a quick visit.”

“We _shouldn’t_.” How did one kill off enthusiasm such as Junhui’s? For a fleeting, mad second, Soonyoung debated blurting out exactly why he couldn’t go into the building. Knowing Junhui though, he’d force Soonyoung to seek out Woozi then, and Soonyoung might literally combust.

“I mean, what about coffee?” he tried desperately instead. “Didn’t you want to go that Ikovox place?”

“We could probably get coffee inside. Yoongi-hyung keeps boasting about their coffee machines; it’s time to see if he’s bluffing to make me envious.” The phone pinged, and Junhui made a satisfied sound. “Awesome, he’s in - c’mon, Soonie, let’s go!”

Before Soonyoung could say he would wait outside for Junhui to be done, the music producer had already hooked his arm through Soonyoung’s, happily tugging him into Woozi’s domain.

Thankfully, a blonde man who was decidedly not Woozi (despite sharing a minor resemblance to him, to Soonyoung’s initial fright) eventually slunk down to the reception desk, rolling his eyes fondly at Junhui as the latter greeted him enthusiastically. As it turned out, Min Yoongi, or Suga, an acclaimed music producer in his own right, was free enough that day to take them briefly through the building.

"I could use the distraction anyway; need to not think about what I'm working on for a bit."

“You'll get it, hyung - I have faith in you. Oh, don’t forget to show us the studios,” Junhui reminded him as Yoongi signed them in through reception. “You were singing so many praises about those Hedd speakers, I thought you’d adopted them as your new religion or something.”

“You wait till you hear them.” Yoongi’s grin was a surprise, softening the slightly surly expression on his face. “You’ll start singing hymns in their name too.”

To say Soonyoung was on edge the minute they stepped into PMBL was an understatement. Whether through some kind intervention of fate or a more active avoidance on Woozi’s part, he hadn’t seen the producer around ever since he turned up on Soonyoung’s almost-literal doorstep with The Letter. Either way, that space had provided Soonyoung with more than ample time to process all the information the letter had provided, save one part.

Truth be told, if you had told Soonyoung a month ago that he would experience a conflicted form of attraction to Woozi, he would have laughed you right out of his door, then promptly typed it into the B.Net idols’ group chat to laugh about it even more.

But here he was, staring at the awards Woozi’s work had won, trying to sort out the feelings that had caught his breath tightly in his chest. Beside Junhui, Yoongi was pointing out certain plaques to his friend, tapping his hand animatedly on the glass panel of the shelf as he talked.

“Heard the kid got an invitation to join the judging panel for the Korean Music Awards the other day. Aish, must be fun to be talented.” 

“You’ve been on the KMM committee before too, hyung.”

“Well, yeah, but I’m goddamn talented too, unlike you.” Yoongi’s smile was gummy, as Junhui shoved good-naturedly at the shorter man’s shoulder, whining half-hearted complaints. “Yah, get off me - you know I’m joking. Point is Woozi’s accomplished a lot in a pretty short time - accepted PMBL’s offer to produce music almost exclusively for their artists right out of university, and three years later, he’s still here, only richer and in higher demand. Thank god he’s got a good head on his shoulders - pretty humble for a guy with his kind of clout, and respectful as well. A bit too honest at times, but that’s probably what makes him an excellent lyricist.”

“Wow, do my ears deceive me, or is Yoongi-hyung actually praising someone?”

“Credit where credit’s due, Jun-ah. Plus, he’s actually a good dongsaeng. I reckon he might go freelance eventually; would be a smart move to. Profit aside, it’ll give him more options for vocal arrangements as well. Different artists, different ranges and skills...it’ll let him stretch his boundaries.”

Neither Yoongi nor Junhui noticed the shiver that shook Soonyoung’s frame briefly at that comment. Instead, they engaged in a spirited discussion about the extent to which vocal colors affected lyrical choices as they started to drift towards the elevators.

Despite the possibility of his appearance haunting every corner like a malevolent spirit, Woozi did not materialize. Eventually, Soonyoung's admiration of the PMBL building overrode the tight ball of nerves in his belly, and he was able to appreciate the amenities the company provided for its employees. The hallways were larger and better lit, for one, with various awards lining the walls. The same seemed to go for their offices, the cubicles buzzing with busy staff. 

Yoongi didn’t waste much time showing them around the offices though, marching straight to where the recording studios were. “You’re lucky the studios are all free today; usually they’re on a tight reservation basis. It’s only myself and Woozi in today though, and he’s stuck in meetings until the evening.”

Junhui pulled an appropriately sympathetic face. “Ooch, those are no fun.” Beside him, every single nerve of Soonyoung's instantly relaxed. No chance of meeting Woozi then. Good. That was great. No chance of saying anything wrong or inappropriate or embarrassing because they were most definitely _not_ going to meet. This was hands down, decidedly The Best Case Scenario.  
  
If he resolutely shoved the peculiar twinge of disappointment that colored his relief to the furthest recesses of his mind, well, no one could judge him for it anyway.

“Perks of being as in-demand as he is.” They reached the closest studio and Yoongi unlocked the door. “Get ready to have your mind blown, Jun.”

“Bring it on, hyung.”

True to Yoongi’s word, the PMBL recording studios’ setup was nothing short of amazing. It didn't take an expert to see that the condenser microphone was of top quality, and the headphones carefully hooked up beside it was one of the best types currently available on the market. In the sound booth, the walls were lined with acoustic panels, corners padded with bass traps B.Net’s own recording studios did not own. Even the music stand looked sturdier than the ones they had at B.Net, barely budging under Soonyoung’s experimental poke. Heck, he was willing to bet that the small couch he could see behind Junhui supported lumbar as well.

It would be almost natural for a producer to be especially critical of music quality and production value, he supposed, if he was afforded easy access to top-of-the-line equipment.

Behind the producer window, Junhui was excitedly making gestures to put the earphones on and step up to the microphone. Soonyoung’s incredulous look was ignored in favor of conversing with Yoongi, probably over the different equipment functions. Various keyboards were already flickering to life beneath Junhui’s hands, and...fine, Soonyoung was weak, okay? Plus, he wasn't likely to be able to touch a pair of Sennheiser headphones anytime soon, much less try them out.

"You look good in there, Soonie," Junhui's chipper voice filtered through the ear cups, timbre clear and full. "It’s almost like you’re an actual professional!"

"Haha, very funny." Was his spit getting on the microphone? Soonyoung would have to discreetly wipe it down later.

"Oh shit, you really _do_ sound incredible! This audio interface is no joke - Hedd speakers, Soonie, _Hedd speakers_. My three-year-old cousin could cry on these and it’d be music, I swear.” Yoongi’s smug ‘I told you so’ was a soft backing track for Junhui’s excitement. “This mixing board is amazing too - I swear it has at least ten more controls than mine back in Shenzhen, and _definitely_ more than the one at B.Net. I don't think I recognize half of these, to be honest. Hey hey, hyung, what does this do?” Junhui’s excitement was infectious, and Soonyoung couldn’t help laughing at the words literally tumbling out of his mouth. “Oh, they’re effects? Damn, Soonie, imagine if we had recorded 'Hurricane' here - the mix could have been so much cleaner, and the reverb, oh my god, the _reverb_ , I can almost hear it, oof."

An involuntary thrill ran through Soonyoung at the thought of recording a song here, of how he might sound with all this equipment amplifying his voice, how much richer and fuller the instrumental backing could sound.

Junhui was still rambling something about monitor managements systems and DAWs when the studio door swung open. Soonyoung automatically turned his attention to the newcomer, only to have his smile freeze in place as his eyes caught familiar brown ones.

Shit.

_Shit._

It was Woozi.

Woozi whom Yoongi had claimed would be in meetings the entire day, and therefore should not have been _right here in the same studio as Soonyoung._

Through the producer window, Soonyoung could see Junhui take his finger off the intercom button to bow politely, rapid-fire words effectively muted by the recording booth's wretchedly effective soundproofing. But that was probably for the best, given the strangled squeak that had involuntarily escaped his throat.

Logically, he knew Woozi hadn’t actually changed since he last saw him at the lobby of his dormitory. Yet, everything was different post-letter, as if someone had fitted new lenses over Soonyoung’s eyes. The idol couldn’t help dropping his eyes to his shoes, unable to hold Woozi’s gaze for too long. The back of his neck was suddenly a little too warm, and he reached up to loosen his collar in a futile attempt to cool it down.

Had he managed to look back up, he would have seen Woozi’s eyes being drawn to Soonyoung’s inadvertent movement, a similar shade suffusing his face as he pulled at the lapels of his blazer. But alas, any sense Soonyoung possessed was either screaming internally at him for daring to appear in front of Woozi like this, or trying to construct some reason, _any_ reason for being in PMBL at all, much less one of the recording studios. 

_(‘It is impossible to stop liking you’_ flashed in his mind, and the screaming instantly won out.)

The muffled buzz of the speaker brought Soonyoung's head back up. Automatically, he locked gazes with Woozi once more behind the soundboard, the latter’s long finger moving to hold down the intercom button. 

"...How is it?"

"Huh?" _Damn it, Soonyoung. Words, use them._

"How is it? The recording equipment." The mild question was a far cry from the imagined demand to evacuate the booth and building immediately. Soonyoung tentatively shuffled back to the microphone.

"It’s...they're...good. Very good. The headphones, I mean. And, uh. The mic. Very nice."

The right corner of Woozi's lips quirked upwards from where he was leaning over the control panels - he was _smiling,_ in Soonyoung’s presence no less. It softened his expression wonderfully, and Soonyoung really shouldn’t be noticing these things right now, damn it. "That's good to know. Yoongi-hyung and I had to push pretty hard to get PMBL to change all their equipment to this current set up, but I haven't been able to really test it out yet."

"Ah, a good investment then.” Oh god, Soonyoung was messing around with equipment Woozi hadn't even used yet? Was it possible to spontaneously expire from embarrassment? "These are great - ten out of ten, would recommend. Ah, not that I know a lot about producing equipment, but. Yeah."

Woozi was quiet for a while. Then, "Hey, could you sing something?"

"Ooh, good idea!” Junhui’s delighted chirp barely registered past the sudden roar of blood rushing in Soonyoung’s ears. 

“W-what?”

“Sing something. So I, uh, we can check the audio feedback, see if the settings are optimized.”

“I...my voice isn’t in good condition at the moment.” The excuse came out a lot more uncertain than Soonyoung would have liked, reedy and high because clearly, he couldn’t function like a normal human being, damn it. Where was his so-called ‘natural charisma’ when he needed it?

“Anything will do.” Woozi’s gaze, when it flickered to meet Soonyoung’s wide-eyed stare, was oddly sincere, no traces of mockery in those dark eyes. “Please?”

Before Soonyoung could reply, the studio door popped open again, revealing a harried looking woman. She said something, which caused Woozi’s countenance to become visibly annoyed. The sound booth lapsed back into silence as the two conversed, Yoongi and Junhui looking on in amusement.

After a while, Woozi nodded once, perfunctorily, before turning to say something to Junhui and Yoongi. Then, he visibly hesitated, hand twitching slightly before he leaned over the sound board once more, peering through the window at Soonyoung.

“I have to go, but. It was good to, uh, see you. Here, I mean. In PMBL.” Woozi cleared his throat. “I hope you enjoy the studio.”

Then he was slipping out the door before Soonyoung could quite decide if that was awkwardness he had heard in the producer’s usually decisive tone. Junhui immediately took his spot, his thoughtful hum a sharp contrast from Woozi’s.

“Wow, Woozi-nim is a lot shorter than I thought.” Yoongi’s annoyed ‘Hey, watch it, asshole’ was conveniently overlooked, as Junhui continued, “Is it just me, by the way, or did he give us permission to try out recording?”

Yoongi looked oddly amused, even as he affirmed that Woozi had, indeed, granted them leave to mess around with the equipment. “Hard to believe, really, if I hadn’t heard it myself. Woozi’s super-anal about who gets to even touch any of the sound recording stuff, much less use it.”

“Maybe he’s in a good mood today. So, Soonie, how about it?” 

Soonyoung was already walking out of the booth, heart pounding a tremulous tempo in his ears. “Uhhh, maybe another time, or perhaps never, I don’t know. L- let’s go look through the rest of the building instead?”

Junhui made as if to protest, before catching sight of Soonyoung’s face and wisely switching conversational tracks. “Alright. Hey, hyung - you said something about amazing coffee the last time we talked; time to see if all your big-talk is true. Oh, and apparently PMBL has one of those Japanese curry rice vending machines in the cafeteria?”

Much to Junhui’s delight, the cafeteria did indeed have the anticipated curry rice vending machines, and even Chinese-based fare that the producer pronounced acceptable. Both he and Soonyoung agreed that the coffee was overrated, but better than B.Net’s. Yoongi was even gracious enough to take them around the practice rooms used for choreography practices, a favor Soonyoung couldn’t appreciate fully due to his preoccupation with Woozi’s sudden appearance.

No, that wasn’t quite right; the producer’s presence had been unexpected, but Soonyoung had to acknowledge that it was only startling because of the questions that still crossed his mind way too often due to The Letter. So it was all true then? Woozi actually _liked_ him? His behavior from earlier was certainly at odds with the man Soonyoung remembered meeting all those months ago. Letting Junhui try the soundboard? Letting them both test the equipment? Asking _him_ to sing, please? Seeming _reluctant_ to leave? 

So caught up was he in trying to decipher the changes in Woozi’s attitude that he missed the figure of the producer himself, straightening from where he was reclining against a pillar close to the entrance as the trio approached. The same blazer they’d seen him in earlier now had the sleeves rolled up and slightly askew. Combined with the slightly loosened tie, he should have presented a rumpled picture. Instead, now that Soonyoung was suddenly hyper-aware of _everything_ , he noticed exactly how alarmingly appealing Woozi looked, hair styled to part around his face, the fairness of his complexion offset by the dark shade of his suit, which must have been tailored for it to curve so nicely around the producer's shoulders and waist. 

If the overall effect caused Soonyoung’s heart to suddenly pound a little faster...well, at least he was the only one privy to this tell-tale sign.

This internal drama was in vast contrast to the laidback greeting Yoongi offered his junior. “He lives. Meeting ended early?”

“Yeah. The agenda wasn't particularly long or anything - just a lot of general formalities we had to clear. Thanks for showing them around today, hyung.” Woozi’s grin was surprisingly wide as he exchanged a high-five with Yoongi before the other producer departed. Having Woozi’s attention turned onto them was more overwhelming than he thought, and Soonyoung resisted clutching Junhui’s arm for support. “I hope the both of you enjoyed your look around PMBL?”

“Very much so!” Thank goodness for Junhui and his indefatigable energy. “I’ve only ever worked with B.Net here in South Korea, so it was great to see how other companies have their studio setups and recording rooms. Makes me think I should start branching out, maybe get poached by other companies.”

That broke Soonyoung out of his daze enough to snort. "You'd miss bossing us around too much to leave for too long, hyung." Woozi's eyes crinkled at that, and Soonyoung hurried on, desperate for some veneer of professionalism. "Ah, where are my manners - this is Wen Junhui. He’s from China, and works as one of B.Net’s in-house producers."

"He knows, Soonie,” Junhui said with a laugh. "Yoongi-hyung introduced us earlier while we were all in the studio."

If Soonyoung had the ability, he would have just evaporated on the spot. This was too much embarrassment for one body. "Oh. R-right. Of course."

"Well, Wen Junhui is worthy of being introduced twice." Woozi didn’t miss a beat, adding a disarmingly friendly smile into the mix. "I didn't manage to say this before, but I've wanted to meet you in person since I listened to Hoshi's ‘Teen, Age’ album. ‘Lilili Yabbay’ and ‘Bring It’ had wonderfully clean arrangements, and I especially like the recurring bassline you used in the arrangement of ‘Clap’."

"Thanks for the generous compliment!" Junhui's clap on Soonyoung's back jerked his speechless stare away from where it had been raking across Woozi's face, which appeared distressingly sincere. "It means a lot coming from you; the type of production quality you’ve maintained in your songs is astounding. I can’t take all the credit though; Soonie here contributed most of that album's lyrics. Even bugged me with beats and riffs that turned out better than my own."

“Sounds like the best kind of collaborator to me. Then again, that doesn’t seem all that surprising, seeing that Hoshi’s goal is to eventually be a self-producing idol. Right?”

“A-ah, yeah." The force of Woozi's warm regard was overwhelming, especially when turned in his direction. and Soonyoung flushed red, despite his best efforts. "I, uh, thought that you didn't like my songs much."

 _Oh_ , the idol realized belatedly, _but he said that he did in his letter, didn’t he?_ Woozi’s sheepish expression only reinforced the fact, the producer ducking his head slightly.

"I'm sorry for having given you the wrong impression previously; I really do like your songs. It works out very well, given how frequently Chan has been blasting your albums on a daily basis."

"'Chan'?"

"Oh, you might know him better as 'Dino' - he’s one of the trainees we'll be debuting soon under the PMBL label." Soonyoung nodded at that; Dino's upcoming debut had been receiving a lot of hype online. It helped that the trainee showed promise as a dancer, the fluidity of his moves apparent in his dance covers posted to Youtube. "I was hoping to ask a favor of you, actually, if it isn't too much trouble. You see, Chan found out that I kind of know you, and has been pestering me to introduce him to, his words, "the greatest idol dancer of the twenty-first century". I understand if you’re unavailable but I thought it wouldn’t hurt to ask. If it’s alright with you, I could bring him around to visit B.Net just for a short while, if only so he'll stop praising his favourite idol long enough to actually practice for his debut."

Soonyoung’s mouth opened before he could think his next words through. "Got tired of being assaulted daily by talk of my amazing character, huh?"

Woozi's gaze was unwavering, even as his lips curved into a smile Soonyoung could get used to seeing. "Got tired of agreeing with him too often; that brat has been lording that over me recently."

Only the sound of Junhui's stifled amusement kept Soonyoung's thoughts from disintegrating into a gibbering mess of unintelligible nonsense. With his few operating brain cells at the helm, he managed to inform Woozi that while he would be busy with blocking choreography, Dino and whoever wished to accompany him would be more than welcome to drop by tomorrow sometime around nine a.m. The alacrity with which Woozi accepted the invitation was no longer startling, but it still held a compelling charm over Soonyoung, as he struggled to keep his flustered emotions from telegraphing themselves. 

"Man, if you had told me I’d be giving _the_ Woozi my phone number this morning, I’d have told you to lay off the alcohol," Junhui remarked, after the three of them had exchanged contact information. "We were informed you would be busy the whole day."

"I was. Still am, actually - I’ve got to run to another meeting in a bit; you know how it is. Just happened to notice the studio was occupied on my way back from a break earlier, and was surprised - there weren’t any bookings in the schedule, after all. I’m glad I checked it out though - curiosity didn’t kill anything this time around. Quite the opposite, in fact.” 

With that, Woozi excused himself, leaving only the memory of a faint smirk lingering in Soonyoung’s mind long after he and Junhui had left the building.

Strange how, now that he had gotten his wish to leave, Soonyoung almost wanted to stick around a little longer, if just to ask what Woozi he meant when he said curiosity had rewarded him. It was almost as if he -

"...certainly was pleased to see you. I didn't know you knew Woozi, much less were so close to him, Soonie."

Junhui's comment, trickling past the fog of Soonyoung’s preoccupation, caused the idol to almost trip over a pavement tile. "What? No, I'm not close to him at all!"

The producer hummed a dismissive little tune. "Nonsense; I have old friends who’re less nice to me than Woozi has been to us. Then again, I guess those friends have never eye-fucked me the way Woozi did you. Oh," Junhui paused upon sighting Soonyoung's expression. "Did I say that wrongly? I was trying to convey that Woozi looked at you in a way that indicates he desires you greatly -"

"Woozi didn't." Soonyoung could have cried, whether in laughter or incredulity, he wasn't sure. "He didn't _eye-fuck me._ " 

"Oh? Sorry, my bad. Korean really _is_ a tricky language sometimes - literal translation only gets you so far. But you get what I meant, right? You know, Soonie," Junhui continued over Soonyoung's incoherent spluttering, stopping to clasp the idol’s shoulder. "I really wouldn't be offended at all if you've decided to solicit - or is it ‘get’? - Woozi-nim to produce some of your tracks. There's no need to hide it from me or anything - we’re all professionals in this business, and I totally understand if you want to try working with a different producer."

"I'm not - we're not - Woozi isn't producing anything for me!"

"You really should ask him to then." Junhui patted Soonyoung's shoulder. "Don’t his tracks become mega-successful? It’d be a great opportunity, and he clearly likes you. Like my mom would say, huā kāi kān zhé zhǐ - that means 'to pluck flowers as they bloom' -"

"Oh wow. _Wooooow._ " Soonyoung said in a last bid to salvage some sanity, "I think I just - no, I _definitely_ just got an idea for that bridge in '247'! We need to go back and work on it _immediately._ "

"Ooh, you did?" The pat on his shoulder immediately became an excited shove, Junhui blessedly dropping his absurd line of questioning at the prospect of fixing that wretched composition issue. "Oh my god, we've gotta get back before you lose it! How far are we from the studio?...keep it locked in your head, Soonie!"

Perhaps as divine punishment for his fibbing, that accursed bridge was not completed that day. But how could it, when images of Woozi in that damnable blazer kept overriding the melody lines Soonyoung should have been concentrating on?

\---

The image of Woozi's fleeting smile had barely had any time to fade from Soonyoung’s dreams before it reinforced itself once more the day after, no less captivating when peeking out of a bespectacled face as Woozi met him at the entrance of the B.Net building. With him came Coups and a fresh-faced, energetic boy, barely an adult in his lanky limbs and earnest attitude as he introduced himself with a bow so low, it almost touched his knees.

“Is your manager not with you again?”

There was nothing but simple curiosity in Woozi’s question, and Soonyoung took care to keep his own reply openly amiable. “Ah, he isn’t. I plan to go back and forth between the dance and recording studios all of today, so Kihyun-hyung doesn't have to stick around. He’s on location with Minhyuk-hyung, since Dokyeom’s on ‘Mafia Game in Prison’ with Seungkwan guesting this week, and Jooheon-hyung’s down with the flu.”

“Oh, I forgot Mafia Game shoots on Thursdays.” Coups chuckled ruefully. “I was hoping he’d be around today, but ‘Mafia Game’ is a fun show to be a regular on. I’ll be sure to catch the episode when it comes out.”

Soonyoung nodded, satisfied with the sincerity of Seungcheol’s comment. “Anyway, I’m afraid you’ve only got me around today.”

“S-Sorry for interrupting, but you’re more than enough, Hoshi-sunbaenim!” Chan instantly bowed again, the apologetic act at odds with the stout declaration, and Soonyoung laughed, startled.

“I’ll try my best to live up to your expectations today, ey? And call me ‘hyung’, Chan-ssi; ‘sunbaenim’ feels a bit too formal for a friendly visit.”

As Seungcheol smilingly also requested for Soonyoung to address him by his real name (“it’d be good to hear my actual name now and then so I don’t actually forget it”), Woozi cleared his throat, hands tucked casually in the pocket of his jeans. “Likewise, if you’re comfortable with it, please call me ‘Jihoon’, Hoshi-ssi. It’s - we’re not here in a work capacity today, and Woozi’s my producer name, so it’d be...I’d really like it if you use my real name as well.”

Soonyoung pressed his lips tightly together to stop himself from showing his surprise too obviously. Woozi appeared sincere enough, even if Coup’s wide grin behind him was a little unnerving. 

“Only if you call me ‘Soonyoung’,” he settled on saying. “Seeing that we are the same age, if I’m not wrong.” He wasn’t; Soonyoung had checked it only a few days ago, furtively on his phone while hidden under his blankets. “You’re a 97-er, right?”

"Ah yes." Woozi - Jihoon, his brain corrected - beamed at him, a happier expression than Soonyoung had ever seen on his face before. “You do have a few months on me though, as a June baby.”

“He looked you up,” Seungcheol stage-whispered, shit-eating grin barely flinching under Jihoon’s deliberate step on his shoe, as Chan stifled giggles behind his palm. “On multiple fan-sites. He knows your favorite color and food too, if you ask.”

Just considering the idea of asking those ludicrous questions was enough to make the back of Soonyoung’s neck warm. The idol hurriedly started leading them into the building, lest he lose his composure before they even made it to the dance studio.

In the studio, Chan’s nerves only stayed bottled until Soonyoung ruffled his hair, cooing over how cute he was. Then it burst out of him in waves, an endearing mix of shy politeness and starry-eyed admiration. Soonyoung was genuinely charmed, exclaiming praises over the trainee’s skill in covering Soonyoung’s older choreography, and showing off some of the steps in his upcoming comeback. It didn’t take much coaxing to get Chan bouncing up onto his feet to dance a few of the steps with him, his seemingly boundless energy falling nicely in line with Soonyoung’s own passionate zeal.

It would be a lie, however, to claim that all of Soonyoung’s adrenaline was fueled by Chan’s enthusiastic admiration. A not-insignificant part of his attention was firmly held hostage by the man slouched beside Seungcheol on a couple of chairs near the sound system. If Jihoon the day before was unlike the terse producer’s usual demeanour, the version currently in the dance studio might have been someone else entirely, a twin who was utterly more pleasant and relaxed than the Woozi Soonyoung had ever known.

The producer’s usual detachedness was nowhere to be found, replaced instead with a laidback agreeableness as he watched the pair goofing off in the middle of the studio. No, Soonyoung thought, as Jihoon laughed uproariously at an impromptu dance-comedy skit Chan pulled off, slapping at his knees until the unrestrained amusement died down to a breathless wheeze. Jihoon wasn’t simply agreeable nor laidback - he was _expressive_. Before today, Soonyoung would never have associated the producer with that description in a million years. 

Now, he wasn’t sure he ever wanted to see the producer associated with any other adjectives but these.

The laughter relaxed Jihoon’s features from their stern lines, softening them into an expression that sat better on his face than the default one he had on at professional events. His clothes only augmented that softness, the man looking the most casual Soonyoung had ever seen him in an oversized hoodie, dark hair fluffy where it stuck out from under a cap.

It was almost as if there had been a curtain separating Woozi from the rest of the man Jihoon was, and Soonyoung had finally been allowed a peek behind it to meet him properly at last. And, while it had been easier to ignore Woozi’s attractiveness when he appeared to be a prick with an overly superior attitude, there was something about Jihoon which made Soonyoung’s heart stutter inexplicably, irrational thing that it was.

What exactly had this complex make of a man seen in Soonyoung to declare himself in love with him?

Thank goodness for Chan, whose antics and fervent sincerity distracted Soonyoung from falling even further into the deepening rabbit hole of feelings for the producer. It was only when the older idol laughingly protested that he needed to catch his breath that the pair finally stopped clowning around, dragging themselves over to where Jihoon and Seungcheol were.

“Are you here all by yourself today, hyung?” Chan's voice betrayed no signs of fatigue, and Soonyoung privately envied his stamina, even as he pushed his sweaty hair off his forehead.

“Yup. Sometimes, Seokmin or Mingyu join me if they have a spot of time, but there's no point in making people stay and watch me drill the same boring steps over and over again for hours.”

"I'd sit and watch you do dance drills all day if I could, hyung."

"Aish, look at this sweet-talker. Is this how they train idols in PMBL?"

“I'm serious - watching you dance could never be boring,” Chan said stoutly over Seungcheol's laughter. “I'm sure Jihoon-hyung agrees with me, right, hyung? You watch Hoshi-hyung's dance videos all the time.”

"Never mind the dancing, Jihoon would watch any video Hoshi's in -" Seungcheol dodged a pointy elbow jab, eyes dancing mischievously.

Soonyoung ducked his head, traitorous cheeks heating up even as he tried to pass off his nerves as naturalness. "Yeesh, those old clips? The recording quality was terrible; I'm surprised you could even make me out properly in those." 

"Trust me, Jihoon definitely sees you, judging by how close he squints at the screen."

" _Yah_ , I didn't bring you here just to slander me, asshole." 

Beneath the abrasive language, there was genuine fondness as Jihoon leant over to groan against Seungcheol's shoulder, one hand coming up to half-heartedly throw punches which his friend laughingly caught. Where Soonyoung would have once bristled at the seemingly-harsh words, he finally recognized their camaraderie to be the same as that which he shared with his labelmates: casual bantering between close friends. He should have seen it sooner, but sheer anger and increasing prejudice had blinded him.

Perhaps, Soonyoung reflected, he really was growing up.

"That reminds me: you did have a reason for tagging along, other than outing my embarrassing secrets." Jihoon's words were still muffled against the soft material of Seungcheol's sweater. "Better ask for that number before you chicken out."

Seungcheol twitched a little at that, shoulders hunching inwards slightly as Chan voiced the question on Soonyoung's mind. "Number? What number are you talking about, hyung?"

"Well, um." Seungcheol scrubbed at his face, even as what was visible of it rapidly went pink. "You see, I talked with Jihoon about the, uh, Dokyeom-blocking -"

On Soonyoung's left, Chan grimaced. "You mean you practically yelled Woozi-hyung's ear off about it. I don’t think I’ve ever heard Coups-hyung cuss that much.”

“And you weren’t supposed to!” The pink darkened to crimson, and oh, Soonyoung noted with interest, Seungcheol’s ears also went red, just like Seokmin’s did. “We were in the studio - no one was supposed to have heard!”

Chan shrugged, unrepentant. “You were really, _really_ loud, hyung. All those concerts must have strengthened your vocal cords - who’d have thought you’d be louder than the soundproofing?” To Soonyoung, he whispered conspiratorially, "Seungcheol-hyung really went ballistic. It was scary."

Jihoon himself looked a little pale at the mere mention of the memory, and Seungcheol bulldozed on, looking even more flustered. "I _talked_ with Jihoon about what had happened, and wow, Dokyeom must have gotten a really shitty impression of me, huh? So I, ah, figured I really owe him an apology at the very least. I was wondering if I could maybe get his contact from you so I could text him and grovel properly?"

Seungcheol's entire demeanor radiated puppy-like sincerity, and even Jihoon was watching Soonyoung, his eyes expectant. Soonyoung toyed with the idea of withholding the information anyway, before sighing and extending his hand.

"Gimme your phone: Seokmin deserves nice things, and you have the potential to be one of those. But, mark my words, Choi Seungcheol: upset him again, and I will find you and beat the shit out of you, reputation be damned."

“Don’t worry, I’ll beat myself up first.” Seungcheol was already fumbling out his phone, shoving it eagerly into Soonyoung’s grip. 

“He really will.” Jihoon made no move to prevent Seungcheol’s actions, observing Soonyoung add Seokmin’s number to the iPhone’s contact list. “Hopefully without wailing on me first this time.”

“That’s because it was _your_ fault, you ass. I _told_ you Dokyeom seemed interested in me -”

“Soonie!” The studio door burst open to admit Junhui’s disheveled figure, music sheets clutched in his hands. “That bridge in ‘247’? _I fixed it_! Can you believe all we had to do was to just lift the synth sound slightly near the D right before the chorus to create, like, a fake drop - I can’t believe I didn’t think of this sooner, the effect is _a-ma-zing_ \- but we’ll need to re-record the whole section - oh, hi everyone, didn’t see you all in here.”

Soonyoung bit back a laugh as he introduced Seungcheol and Chan to Junhui, the latter readily switching tracks to effuse over the new acquaintances. Jihoon sidled up to him as Junhui started praising Seungcheol’s latest single.

“I thought he was just excited yesterday, but is he always this energetic?”

“Pretty much. It’s his 4D personality charm.” Soonyoung tried not to startle too obviously as Jihoon’s hand brushed against his. "Perpetually optimistic, always game to try anything.”

Jihoon huffed a quiet chuckle. “Perpetually optimistic, huh? I wonder how he’d do with a collaborator saddled with overwhelming realism. Still, it might be fun to work together with him one day, maybe on one of your releases.”

Butterflies were taking flight in Soonyoung’s stomach at what the producer was implying. “T-that sounds.” _Incredible. Unbelievable._ “Kinda cool.”

“Does it?” 

Could his heartbeat be felt through clothing? It certainly felt loud enough to transmit through the pinky finger just about touching Jihoon's fingertips. “It really does. Also...I hate to have to do this, but Jun-hyung was cleaning up the last few tracks of my new album. If he’s down here, it probably means I’ll have to cut your visit here short and go re-record whatever he needs me to.”

“That’s fine - I know how the crunch is like near the release date.” The warmth disappeared, Soonyoung privately mourning its loss even as he fixated on where Jihoon was tugging down the sleeves of his hoodie absent-mindedly. “I’ll get hyung and Chan out of your hair.”

“I’m really sorry to have to rush you all out, especially after you took the trouble to come all the way here.” God, Soonyoung needed to stop staring. But Jihoon had sweater paws, and looked ridiculously soft, decked out in that outfit. Who knows, maybe Soonyoung might have formed a better first impression of him if he had met him in a hoodie.

“Eh, I’m pretty sure we’d both still get on each other’s nerves, hoodie or no.”

Shit, had he said that out loud? 

Jihoon’s face creased into a smile at Soonyoung’s consternation. “Don’t worry about it; it was my own fault for giving you such a lousy first impression.”

“Yeah well, I assumed the worst as well, so I was equally to blame.” Soonyoung tugged at his own t-shirt sleeves, suddenly painfully aware of how sweaty he must look in comparison. “You’d have looked less intimidating in a hoodie though.”

‘And also way too young.”Jihoon chuckled, self-deprecating. “The suit jackets help with looking older; makes it easier to be taken seriously. Hoodies unfortunately don’t help much with crafting a professional image.”

“It’s cute though,” Soonyoung found himself blurting out, to his horror. “You're…it looks really cute.”

“Then I guess I’m going to have to wear another one of these when I see you next, huh?”

“What? You don’t have to - I mean-”

Jihoon regarded his flailing steadily. “But you like how I look in them, right?”

‘Well, yes, but-”

“It’s settled then. I’ll wear a hoodie if you come to Chan’s debut showcase next month. Deal?”

“You don’t - what?”

“Chan’s debut showcase as Dino - it’ll be at the Jangchung gymnasium.” Two tickets, seemingly appearing from nowhere, were pushed into Soonyoung’s unresisting hands. “If you’re free, Chan would be really happy if you could make it. As would I,” Jihoon added, eyes directly meeting Soonyoung’s. 

“I’ll check my schedule. I…would like to attend and support Chan as well.”

Jihoon’s satisfied delight at that was something that would stay with Soonyoung, long after the trio had taken their leave. Only, in vast contrast to the previous months, it provoked no disgust, or ire. Rather, it felt oddly dear, a treasured memory as the last of the pride and prejudice choking the idol’s heart finally crumbled, leaving space for something far better, far lovelier, far sweeter, to bloom instead.

\---

"Geonbae!"

Shot glasses clinked together in a tinkling tune of merriment, accompanied by raucous laughter riding the high of a successful debut showcase. The person being celebrated, despite holding a glass of soda himself, looked as drunk as the adults around him, smile stretching wide across his face as he flushed red beneath the praises heaped upon him. Everything from the dance to the interview had gone without a hitch, and when Chan's manager, a heavy-set man who had downed at least three cans of maekju, boomed that Dino was currently trending on Naver, the proclamation was met with a hearty round of triumphant roars. 

Soonyoung cheered along with the rest of the table, gamely downing another shot of soju raised in the name of Dino's future successes. Then he couldn't _not_ raise a glass to the fantastic job Dino had done in covering ‘HIT’ at the showcase, something everyone was all too willing to drink to as well.

By the time the toasts were done, the table was littered liberally with more empty bottles and cans than plates, the chatter around the table decidedly looser and more relaxed as the meat was finished and the drinks kicked in. Soonyoung's vision was already blurring into a landscape of wriggly colors, and he narrowed his eyes at his shot glass before deciding to empty it anyway. If he was going to be drunk, he might as well go all the way.

More squinting eventually revealed Vernon in animated conversation at the far end of the long table, decked in what appeared to be a neon green hoodie over a red button up. Not that the bizarre fashion combination seem to faze Seungkwan, who was clutching his own shot glass close to his cheek as he stared at Vernon with more fascination than he had shown as the event’s emcee only hours earlier. Apparently Jihoon had finally loosened some of his restrictions on Vernon, if the intern was allowed to finally attend late-night celebration dinners with this much alcohol flowing. 

It took less effort to swing his head slightly to spy on where Seungcheol and Seokmin were just a couple of seats away from Seungkwan, the pair engaged in their own private conversation. Soonyoung was a little too sloshed to make out their faces, but he was willing to bet it was going well - Seokmin's wide smile was hard to miss, even when drunk.

"Yeee-aaah,” he slurred. “Geddit, Minnie."

A familiar snort filled his ears as he polished off his tenth (Eleventh? Fifteenth?) glass of soju. "You're totally sloshed, aren't you?"

"Mmmm," he agreed, then frowned thoughtfully. "Nope." If he were - and he would be soon, at the rate he was going - he wouldn't be so aware of Jihoon's presence across him. Neither would he be struggling so obviously with keeping his eyes to himself; he had it on good authority (and shaky video) that drunk-Soonyoung was a shameless Soonyoung, and shameless-Soonyoung would be fearless enough to meet Jihoon's arched eyebrow with a coy smirk of his own.

As it was, _half_ -drunk Soonyoung was still all too conscious of the staff chattering around them. And of Jihoon’s hoodie, which he had actually worn throughout the event, a lovely, warm-looking dark green affair that made Jihoon look as soft as its material. And of Jihoon's smile, small and pleased. And of how Jihoon was actually quite reserved in polite company, compared to the unhindered laughter he had displayed in B.Net’s dance studio the other week. And how Jihoon's eyes, upon finally making proper eye contact with Soonyoung, had crinkled adorably with a misplaced fondness -

The soju slid a stinging path down Soonyoung's throat, causing him to cough slightly. Jihoon said something that the buzz in his ears drowned out, and the idol managed a weak thumbs-up at him.

He was here for Dino, not Jihoon. He was here for Dino, not Jihoon. _He_ was _here_ for _Dino,_ not Jihoon-

In the periphery of his vision, Jihoon casually pulled at the loose collar of his hoodie, inadvertently revealing a tantalizing peek at defined collarbones. Soonyoung may have made a sound. He definitely finished his glass. 

Screw staying sober - Soonyoung had clearly crossed that threshold five drinks ago. With the remaining sobriety left in him, he sent up a small prayer for Seokmin to stay clear-headed enough to drag all the B.Net people home afterwards. Seokmin wouldn’t want to get drunk and forget the night, right? Not with him and Seungcheol being on the same page now? 

Whatever. If he needed to, he could probably drunk-text Kihyun. Right now, the only way Soonyoung was going to make it through tonight was via liquid courage - at this point, shameless flirting sounded miles better than this self-conscious embarrassment. And as the person beside him tipped the bottle in his direction, Soonyoung grinned and extended his glass, pointedly not staring across the table. Drunk-Soonyoung would handle that when the time came.

Right now, his only aim was to get there.

\---

Ringing. Ringing. 

Bolts hammering through his head. Pain pain _paiiiin._

Ringing.

Oh. His phone.

"-lo?..."

" _H-hyung._ "

"...‘Kwannie? Wha..."

 _"Hyung."_ A hiccuped sob, then a soft wail." _Hyuuuuuuunggg-"_

_“Is that Soonie? Shhh, there there, Seungkwan-ah, don’t cry, just pass me the phone-”_

‘‘Kwannie? Jun...?”

A crackle of static. “ _Hey, Soonie.”_ A pause. Then, a heavy exhale.“ _...Never mind. Go back to sleep, Soonie, don’t worry about it. I’ll ring Jooheon, everything’s gonna be alright, okay?”_

“Jooheon? Why -? What’s going on?”

_“Don’t wor-”_

“Jun!”

More silence. Then another sigh, even heavier than the first. _“Ok, don't panic, alright? It's just...well. Seungkwan’s been arrested.”_

\---

"Soonyoung?"

His head, the walls, the furniture - everything pulsed in tempo with the two syllables. The room was spinning, circles rippling outwards from where his hand was pressed against softness that sunk beneath his weight.

He couldn’t find the floor. He needed to find the floor. 

Something clattered.

Seungkwan needed him. _Needed_ him.

Pain in his knees. Oh, there was the floor. It wasn't his floor. He looked blankly at not-his table, down at not-his carpet. Blinked hard. Blinked again. 

Another pulse of agony squeezed his brain. No time for that. He shuffled forward.

"Soonyoung." A grip, warm on his shoulder. Another hand on his other shoulder, squeezing like his head. The world rocked slightly. Soonyoung moved with it, as the lights went out. "Soonyoung, what's wrong? Soonyoung, hey. Hey, look at me. Are you okay?"

He obligingly turned towards the voice, seeing nothing but darkness. The lights were still out. 

Oh, right. Eyelids. Open them.

The concern on Jihoon’s _(oh my god, it’s Jihoon)_ face, as blurry and wavering as it appeared, was still recognisable in the dim light. “Do you need to throw up again?” 

He was moving again. Wait, no, he was being _moved_ , arm pulled up on Jihoon's shoulder-? 

Jihoon was talking again, something about the toilet and sinks.

Wait, no. No no no no noooo. The toilet isn’t the police station. Soonyoung needed to go to the police station.

“ _Nooooooooo_.” Jihoon’s grip was tighter than he thought. “Must...go police station.”

“Police station? What - did you have a nightmare? C’mon, let’s get you back on the couch-”

“No! Must go to th’ station! Kwannie…”

The world stilled, Soonyoung swaying in place with it. “Kwannie? Kwan... you mean Seungkwan? Didn’t he go back with Vernon?”

“Kwannie's at… police station…” Another throb of pain, from his knees or head Soonyoung couldn't figure out, even as he screamed internally. Fuck, why had he drunk _so fucking much?_

“Seungkwan is at the police station?”

Yes! Seungkwan is at the Seoul Gangnam police station with Vernon, and there was drunk driving and weed involved and a policeman and they were arrested and Soonyoung needed to be at the police station _right now_ , because someone needed to rescue Seungkwan before their managers found out, before Dispatch and Naver and everyone found out and Seungkwan’s life was ruined -

The ceiling wavered into view. The overhead fan looked a little blurry, and Soonyoung blinked, startled when something warm trickled down his cheek. 

Jihoon’s thumb was soft where it wiped the tears away. “Shhh, don't cry. It'll be okay.”

“But Kwannie -" Soonyoung struggled to sit up.

"You’re drunk, Soonyoung. You shouldn’t be at the police station either; it won’t look good for you."

"But -"

“Shhhh, don’t worry. I’ll go get Seungkwan, okay?” Jihoon’s voice is steady and warm, a beguiling lullaby. “I'll go right now. It’ll be fine. I’ll take care of it. It’ll be fine. Everything will be fine, I promise. C’mon, that’s it, close your eyes, mmm, it’ll be okay. Sleep.”

Anchored by Jihoon's hand pressed warm against his chest, Soonyoung slept.

\---

 **Junjun** [39 unread]

 _3:34 am_ _  
_soonie dont come

 _3:34 am_ _  
_youre drunk itll make things worse  
  
 _3:35 am_  
stay where you are pls  
  
 _3:36 am_ _  
_seungkwan isnt arrested i forgot the korean word for brought in for questioning my bad  
vernon was the one driving  
the mj is on him too thank god  
i mean its not good that seungkwan was in the car too but  
no reporters around i checked  
only abt four officers here too think this can be contained

 _3:40 am_ _  
_theyre talking to vernon atm _  
_gonna try to get them to not test kwannie for drugs  
he said he only took one puff, didnt know what it was  
dw I got your boi  
how tf did vernon kid even get a joint into s korea wtf  
plus a whole bag of mj apparently??? wtf  
  
 _3:54 am_ _  
_seungkwans telling me to tell you that hes sorry  
again  
havent texted jooheon or hyunwoo yet  
Im gonna call jooheon 

_3:55 am_ _  
_woozi is here??? wtf  
  
 _3:57 am_ _  
_he says you’re at his place???  
why tf are you at his place???  
  
 _3:58 am_ _  
_holy shit  
he just busted into the room they’re talking to vernon in  
Can they do that in s korea? damn  
cant hear anything  
wanna go listen in but dont wanna leave kwannie alone

 _4:02 am_  
seungkwans still sorry  
 _  
__4:10 am_ _  
_woozis getting louder  
still cant make out what hes saying tho  
i think he knows one of the officers? idk jz going off body language here  
no sight of paparazzi still all gd  
  
 _4:26 am_ _  
_igdi but apparently we can leave???  
taking seungkwan home now  
thank god  
  
 _4:28 am_ _  
_woozi said to pick you up from his  
says hes gotta settle vernons stuff  
got woozis apartment access code this is kind of surreal tbh lol  
be there asap


	4. Act Four

“You are banned from drinking anything even vaguely alcoholic for a month.” Kihyun’s expression was furiously thunderous, knuckles white where they were clenched around the steering wheel of the company van. “I don’t care if I have to use my override for this - _a whole damn month_.”

Soonyoung might have put up a token protest at that if he hadn’t been in so much pain. His head was still pounding badly enough that he couldn’t quite hold it up properly, much less try to argue with his clearly agitated manager. “Yes, hyung.”

The meek acquiescence didn’t pacify Kihyun in the slightest. “You’re lucky you’re working on your album, or I’d ban you from going out altogether. Maybe I should do it anyway - ban you from going anywhere except to and from the studio, with exceptions for activities, and straight back after.”

“Hyung!” Soonyoung’s head snapped up at that, a decision he immediately regretted as the headache immediately ratcheted up in intensity. He squeezed his eyes shut, swallowing against the urge to throw up again. 

“Don’t ‘hyung’ me,” Kihyun continued relentlessly, even as a packet of aspirin and a bottle of water landed ungracefully in Soonyoung’s lap. “God knows you’ve done it too many times already. ‘What’s the worst that could happen, hyung?’ ‘We’re responsible adults, hyung’, ‘We’ll be careful, hyung’, ‘We won’t get too drunk, hyung.’ _This,_ Soonyoung. This is what could, and did happen when we don’t keep track of what you do! Maybe we’ve given you guys too much freedom- ” 

“Hyung,” Soonyoung tried again in thin desperation. “It wasn’t even me who -”

“No. No, it wasn’t. But does it really matter? How many times do I have to drive it in, Soonyoung - _You_. _Are. An. Idol._ Not some random person, or salaryman, or, or university student. You absolutely cannot, _cannot_ afford for your name to be linked to any kind of scandal, you idiot! On top of that,” Kihyun took the next turn in the road with a jerk so sharp, Soonyoung felt his innards scramble slightly, “you’re supposed to be the senior! In the absence of all the managers, you were supposed to _be the responsible one_. Whatever the fuck Seungkwan got up to last night, _you_ were supposed to stop him. Not Dokyeom, _you._ ”

To his horror, Soonyoung felt tears start to blur his vision. His fingers were long numb with how tightly he was squeezing them in his lap, and he fought back the overwhelming urge to sniffle, tilting his head back in a vain attempt to keep the shame from trickling down his cheeks. 

Kihyun must have noticed his charge give up trying to defend himself, because the manager exhaled explosively, his back slumped back against the driver’s seat. “God, look at me being a fucking hardass. Sometimes I forget how restrictive your life is. It's easy to since you guys rarely get into trouble.” Another audible sigh. “You guys are usually good charges. Which is why we get too lax sometimes, forget that you all are young enough to fuck up every once in a while.”

“I’m really sorry, hyung.” Fuck, Soonyoung was crying properly now, on top of the hangover. “Really.”

“It’s on me, and Jooheon and Minhyuk too, for letting you guys go to that dinner unsupervised. I should have known after parties can get out of hand. But really, who could have guessed marijuana would turn up around that kind of event? I figured the worst would be a couple of drunk photos, maybe some shots of cigarettes or something.” Kihyun sighed, muttering something indistinct about clubs. “At least you weren’t directly linked to it. Damn, I’m glad I’m not Jooheon right about now. Even _he’s_ lucky, though - we’re here panicking like a bunch of headless chickens, but nothing’s appeared in the press at all. Zilch. And according to Junhui and Seungkwan, this is thanks to - of all people - _Woozi_. If this really flies under the radar completely, B.Net owes him a huge favor. Goodness knows how he plans to cash it in.”

The sudden mention of the producer, coupled with the memory of Junhui’s SNS messages, caused Soonyoung to stiffen. Kihyun glanced at him from the corner of his eye, contemplative as he finally pulled into the KBS parking lot. 

“Look, don’t think about it, Soonie. There’s nothing we can do, or should do, unless something leaks to the press. Here, wipe your eyes. Your nose too, while you’re at it. I’m gonna give you five minutes for the aspirin to kick in, then we’ll go clear the filming, grab lunch, and head straight back to the studio. Sound good?”

Soonyoung could only nod.

\---

"Honestly," Junhui sighed for what seemed like the thirtieth time in his narration, "you'd think that Vernon kid would be smarter than this. This is _South Korea_ , super-strict on all kinds of drugs. And this kid not only has a whole baggie of marijuana in his car's front drawer-"

"Glove compartment."

"In his glove compartment, he's stupid enough to get drunk, pick up an idol in his his car, smoke a joint while driving _and_ break the speed limit. It sounds like the opening of one of those Hollywood movies.”

Despite his initial tight-lippedness, Junhui had clearly hit his story-telling stride; he was in fine form now, narrowly missing the soundboard as he hit the table to emphasize each decision Vernon had apparently made. It had taken every persuasive trick Soonyoung knew to get the music producer to fill him in on the details of what had happened that fateful night. Junhui had finally relented after the idol had pointed out that he wouldn’t be able to focus on recording until he knew exactly what had gone down. 

And so, Junhui had turned off the equipment, warned Soonyoung that they would only do this for ten minutes and not a second more, before launching into an increasingly spirited retelling of the whole series of events that definitely took at least half an hour.

Kihyun probably would have screamed if he saw the two of them discussing what he had expressly directed Soonyoung to leave alone. But there was no other source of information he could tap. Seungkwan had clammed up, the normally gregarious man still understandably spooked by what had happened. Aside from insisting he hadn’t known what the joint was, and admitting he had been extremely drunk, he was a locked box. All a very apologetic Seokmin could tell him around the huge hug he curled around Soonyoung was that he had left with Seungcheol, soon after Seungkwan had gone off with Vernon and Woozi had promised to look after a piss-drunk Soonyoung. None of the managers would say anything, understandably enough.

But Soonyoung had to _know_. Not simply due to idle curiosity - he wouldn’t have gone to these extents to find out if it was just that - but because despite not being there, he was irrevocably involved in this whole affair. His spotty memory informed him that indirectly, he was the reason why Woozi had gone down to the police station; he had, in one way or another, sent him there. 

And so, Soonyoung listened intently from where he was curled up on the tiny sofa in the recording studio, hungry for the tidbits of revelation Junhui was feeding him.

"...I don't want to defend him, hyung, but Kwannie was the one who approached him for a ride back. And apparently, Vernon didn’t force him to try the joint - he did it himself, even if he didn’t know what it was."

"Oh, what Seungkwan did was dumb, no doubt about that. But Vernon still doesn’t deserves a pass - I'm a foreigner too, but you don't see me doing this kind of stupid shit, right? Because I, unlike some people, abide by the rules of the country I'm in."

"You're the best foreigner I know, hyung." Soonyoung held his hand up for an enthusiastic high five. "Besides, didn’t Yoongi-hyung text you that he got punished for the whole mess?”

“Getting shipped back to New York with no repercussions is like a tiny, tiny slap on the wrist, Soonie. Of course, there might be a lot more behind the scenes that they didn’t tell the PMBL staff - hyung doesn’t know why the kid’s going back, for one - but it still sounds like he got off light. If I were Woozi, I’d be pushing for a lot more retribution, considering the amount of trouble he got involved in.”

“Speaking of trouble, so you said you guys were in the police station...?"

"Right, right. So, I was comforting Seungkwan and trying to figure out what to do when Woozi comes marching in like an angry, avenging angel-"

"Your penchant for K-dramas is showing."

“No, really, he did! My phone was out and ready to speed-dial Jooheon when he kicked open - okay, fine," Junhui amended under Soonyoung's suspicious squint, "he pushed the front door open like a polite adult. But he was still terrifying, okay? I mean, he was only wearing a long coat over Pororo pyjamas, but even I was a little scared of him, no joke. Walked right past the front desk to where Seungkwan and I were sitting, and...Soonie, he was so gentle with him."

"I thought you said he was an 'angry, avenging angel'?"

"He was - but look, Seungkwan was crying, okay? Tell me who'd be mean to that boy when he's sad. Anyway, I told him what Seungkwan told me about the drugs and drunk-driving, and he went straight into the office they were interrogating Vernon in." Junhui leaned back against the cushions of the recording studio's small couch, picking up his coffee mug to sip from it. "Only paused for a bit to look through the glass paneling before he went in - I guess he knew one or them or something? We weren’t close enough to hear what was going on, and they used a lot of Korean words I wasn't familiar with - but fifteen minutes in, Woozi came back, told me to get Seungkwan out of there, and pick you up from his place. I didn't leave until he assured me Seungkwan would be okay though."

Soonyoung's brow furrowed. "No offense, but why _did_ Kwannie contact you first, hyung? Why not Jooheon-hyung, or one of us?"

"To be honest, I think he _was_ trying to call Jooheon - he _is_ Kwannie’s manager and all that - but he probably pressed the wrong number in drunken panic or something, poor thing. He probably used the call log? Yes, the call log. I called him last week about the single he’s planning to release next month - or next year now, I guess - so I'd be pretty high on the 'recent calls' list. I was surprised that he called you though." Junhui paused, mouth turning down into a frown. "You were _really_ hungover, Soonie. I’m so glad you didn’t turn up at the station. B.Net didn’t need a drunkard-idol scandal on top of a potential drug scandal."

“Well, with Jooheon-hyung absent, I was the senior that night - guess that’s why Kwannie tried,” said Soonyoung with a sigh, the memory of Kihyun’s scolding still quite fresh. "And I've been through worse." He shifted around on his side of the sofa. 

"If that wasn't your worst, your worst must be a horrible thing indeed. You could barely stand when I came to get you from Woozi’s apartment." Junhui cocked his head. "Why _were_ you at his place, Soonie? Not for a booty call, was it? He didn't roofie you, did he?"

" _No,_ and no." Soonyoung sighed, long and loud as he dropped his head. "Seokmin said Ji - Woozi offered to take me home, so he could stay out with Seungcheol-hyung a little longer. I must’ve been wasted as hell though if Woozi probably thought it easier to let me sleep it off at his place than try to drag me back to the dorms. Lessens the possibility of other people spotting me drunk too, maybe?"

"Hmmm, sounds reasonable."

The studio went silent again, both men content to sit and ruminate on the events that had transpired a week ago. 

"...you sure you weren't exaggerating what happened that night, hyung?"

"Would I exaggerate something as serious as this?"

"I don't know. Not that I'm doubting you, but it's...a lot to wrap my head around. Why would Woozi do that for Kwannie?"

Junhui didn't answer immediately, the furrow between his eyebrows telegraphing the construction of thought going on in the producer's mind. "Well… I’ll admit all your managers and myself asked the exact same question. And after thinking about it, I came up with a hypothesis, but you're going to accuse me of exaggerating things again."

"Just spit it out."

"I think...don't get mad, this is my honest opinion - I think he did it for you."

Soonyoung snorted. "Be real, hyung."

"I _am_ being real!"

"Why would he ever do that -" _for me_ , his mind supplied. _For me, who Jihoon claimed to love._ _What other reason would make more sense than this?_

Across him, Junhui had steepled his fingers, looking thoughtful as he weighed his words slowly. "Soonie, the fact is Woozi doesn't know Seungkwan enough to help him in this kind of situation. To be honest, even I wouldn't step in for a B.Net intern, much less someone from another company. And over something as serious as this? It's too much hassle, too much risk to the reputation, so to speak. But there Woozi was, essentially untangling an almost-stranger from a scandal that could break that guy's career and company… for what? He doesn't owe B.Net anything. Nor is he well acquainted with any of us to do us such a large favour... except _you_.

“There’s this idiom we have in China - yī wǎng qíng shēn. It translates into 'being head over heels' or 'passionately in love' but _more_. It's...ah, qíng shēn, it means 'deep feeling'. The kind that all songs and literature and shows keep trying to express, the feeling that overwhelms, but that - that drives someone to fiercely protect the one they love, selflessly and at all costs.

"When he asked me to pick you up... call me soft or deluded, but I saw that feeling in his face. From where I'm standing, Soonie, nothing else makes sense except one conclusion: he did all this for _you_."

The producer looked at Soonyoung, then looked again, before a slow, delighted grin spread across his face. "Annnnnd there it is again. Yī wǎng qíng shēn."

\---

"Excuse me, Hoshi-ssi."

Soonyoung was in the middle of scarfing down the last few bites of his kimchi fried rice when the polite greeting came from his right. Across him, Kihyun looked up from where he had pulled out his wallet, arm already tensing in preparation to shield Soonyoung, should the stranger try to physically accost his charge.

But as the stranger, a smartly-dressed office worker, stayed inclined in the bow she had bent into, Soonyoung's public-ready smile relaxed in favor of a more puzzled one. "Yes, can I help you?"

"I'm Im Jin-Ah, personal assistant to Han Seong-Su, the CEO of PMBL Entertainment." The woman straightened, brushing out the wrinkles in her immaculate blazer. "I was sent to tell you that sajang-nim sends his compliments, and has already paid for your lunch. Also, he would like to have a friendly word with you, Hoshi-ssi, if it is convenient."

"Oh, that's very considerate of sajang-nim," Kihyun remarked, putting away his wallet. "Of course we'll go and greet him."

"Oh, but." Jin-Ah looked mildly apologetic, her hands folding in front of her. "He very specifically requested to meet Hoshi-ssi only, without anyone...else…"

Soonyoung exchanged a quick look with his equally bewildered manager at that startling statement. _What did you do?_ Kihyun's creased eyebrows asked. _Nothing, I swear_ , Hoshi's wide eyes replied.

"That's highly unorthodox. May I ask why Han-sajang-nim might want to speak to Hoshi alone?"

"I'm sorry, but I wasn't informed of the details."

Kihyun was starting to frown in earnest. "Surely sajang-nim can talk to Hoshi in front of me, his manager."

Soonyoung almost felt sympathy for Jin-Ah; being pinned under Kihyun's probing gaze, especially when he was dissatisfied with something, was not a fun experience. To her credit, the personal assistant stood her ground. "I'm so sorry, but sajang-nim insisted very strongly he wanted to meet with Hoshi-ssi alone."

"It’s my responsibility to look after the talent in my care. After all, how do we know this isn't some kind of sasaeng scam?

"I can assure you this is not a scam in any form. If you'd like, you can accompany him to the front of the room, to verify sajang-nim's presence for yourself."

"What I would _like_ is to accompany Hoshi into the meeting itself. I'm sure Han-sajang-nim would understand." 

Kihyun's jaw was stiff in the manner that indicated the manager's stubbornness was out in full force; and a force it was indeed, made near immovable ever since Seungkwan’s almost-scandal. Jin-Ah was also starting to look frazzled, and the longer the stalemate lasted, the more delayed Soonyoung would be from the next item on his agenda for the day. Worst of all, more than one diner were turning to survey the tableau with idle curiosity, and getting recognized here was not on Soonyoung's list of priorities in any form.

So, he drew a deep breath and reached out to tap Kihyun on the shoulder. "It's ok, hyung. I'll go."

"But -"

"I mean, it's just a quick hello and thank-you, right? It'll be over super quick, and then we can go to our next schedule. C'mon, hyung - don't cause a scene."

Kihyun sent him a look so sharp, it could have scalped Soonyoung. "I literally made a personal vow to accompany you to everything just a few weeks ago - I don’t intend to break it so quickly."

"How about,” Soonyoung fished around for ideas. “I promise to tell you everything afterwards?"

Kihyun paused, lips pursing at that. "Everything?"

" _Everything_."

"Every tiny detail?"

" _Yes,_ hyung, all the details I can recall later." Chair legs scraped across tile as Soonyoung stood up. "I'll be right back; just...have a coffee first."

Despite the small size of the restaurant they had stopped for lunch at, its private dining rooms were larger than expected. Toeing off his shoes, Soonyoung allowed himself another long, fortifying breath before he rapped on the door frame to announce his presence.

"Ah, come in." 

In person, the PMBL CEO was only slightly less intimidating than he had seemed on that Lunar television special a few months back. Seated behind a table littered with empty plates, the man’s smile didn't quite reach his eyes in a face lined with years of experience, rather than emotions. Simply put, Han Seong-su did not look like a man who paid for idols' lunches out of genial benevolence, nor the type who called people into one-on-one meetings merely to greet them.

Soonyoung registered all this within seconds of stepping into the room. Resisting the urge to tuck his hands into his pockets, he clasped his fingers tightly behind his back to keep their twitching was out of sight. This man was not his boss, he reminded himself. That was Hyunwoo.

Still, he was starting to regret the bravado that had resulted in one of his strongest supports waiting outside, deaf to whatever the PMBL CEO might have to say to Soonyoung. 

“Sajang-nim.” He bowed, one hand scrabbling up against his chest to prevent the loose collar of his oversized sweater from gaping open and exposing his lack of shirt beneath.

“Hoshi.” The older man nodded at him, that not-quite smile still hanging on his features like a pale banner. “Please, take a seat.”

He’d much rather have thirty broadcast cameras hyper-trained on him than sit across the PMBL CEO. Still, Soonyoung stepped onto the slightly raised platform and dropped gracefully into a comfortable kneeling position across the man, settling himself on the balls of his feet. 

"Good afternoon, sajang-nim. My manager and I would like to express our thanks for your generosity." 

"It's a small matter; think nothing of it." Thick fingers flickered in a gesture mimed to brush something off. "Have you been busy lately, Hoshi-ssi?"

"My schedule is sufficiently packed with work, sajang-nim. I have been quite lucky to have a faithful fanbase. As it is, I have a schedule to get to after this."

"Hmm, that's adequate for a middling-popularity idol, I suppose." There was an air of studied deliberateness in how Seung-su leant slightly backwards, eyes appraising. "Still, your popularity seems to have grown considerably of late."

The observation - and an observation it was, as it was decidedly not a compliment - was unexpected. "Ahh, sajang-nim is too kind; I'm not _that_ popular."

"You certainly seem so amongst some of my employees." The reply was too insouciant, the CEO a lazy shark circling his prey. "Especially in terms of Woozi. Unless I'm wrong, of course."

“I'm not sure what you might mean by that, sajang-nim.” Soonyoung met Seung-su's probing gaze with his own perfectly guileless one.”Woozi-ssi and I have only recently grown close enough to consider each other friends.”

"Is that so? Your sudden friendship must have quite the impact on Woozi then, judging from the events that transpired at the Seoul Gangnam police station last week." At the involuntary sound that escaped Soonyoung, Seong-su smiled, a curve with no humor in it. “Ah, I see you are aware of the incident as well. That's good. You see, Choi Hansol is our employee, however temporary that position may be. So naturally, I have taken an interest in this, ah, problem. However, despite the clarity of the report I received, I still have some questions that remained unsatisfactorily answered. I was hoping you could help shed some light in regards to that, Hoshi.”

Years of vocal lessons kept his voice pleasantly modulated as Hoshi replied, expression as placid as the man across him. “I will endeavour to assist you in any way I can, sajang-nim. I have to confess though that I myself was not present during the incident, and only heard of it through my label mate.”

The CEO chuckled as if amused. “A well-spoken idol indeed. I am sure you know of Woozi’s involvement in settling the matter, at least?”

“I am aware of that, yes.”

“That Woozi would step in to handle Hansol’s matters is only natural - he does work for PMBL, and any scandal involving the company would impact his career negatively.” The look that he settled upon Soonyoung was piercing. “What surprised me was to discover that Woozi had not only cleared Boo Seungkwan of any involvement in the entire affair, but that he had done so _before_ negotiating on Hansol’s behalf.”

The idol’s mouth dropped open before he could prevent it from doing so. “W- _what_? I mean, I don’t - Forgive my poor turn of tongue, sajang-nim. I meant to say that I didn’t know that that was the case.”

“Boo Seungkwan was dismissed of any association with the case at hand. Considering his presence in that situation, that cannot have been easy to accomplish. On top of that, there has not been a single report on the issue on any media, including the paparazzi who are usually quite good at digging up dirt such as this. This, more than Hansol's mess, was intriguing; _someone_ must have used quite a bit of effort to ensure nothing was leaked beyond the station. However, Woozi is being quite tight-lipped as to why he had inexplicably prioritized our competitor’s employee over our own, and I'd hate to jeopardize our working relationship with him. As such,” fingers steepled as Seong-su leant forward, “I was wondering if you, Hoshi-ssi, might have some additional insight as to Woozi’s motivations.”

Despite the generous air-conditioning, the heat beneath Soonyoung’s collar refused to abate. “I’m afraid I cannot offer any information that you are not already privy to, sajang-nim.”

“Hmmm, is that so?”

“I am absolutely certain of that.” Soonyoung arranged his features into a well-honed blankness, subtly dropping his shoulders between carefully controlled breaths. “I am truly sorry.”

“Are you?” Plastic creaked as Seong-su leant back into the cradle of his chair. “Let me make myself clear then: you may think you have manipulated yourself into a beneficial position in regards to Woozi, but having relations with one of my producers, no matter how influential he may be, will not benefit you or your company in any shape or form. In fact, it may result in the exact opposite of what you might be aiming to achieve.”

“... _What_?” 

“Please sit down, Hoshi-ssi.”

Soonyoung hadn’t realised he’d half-risen from where he’d been kneeling. His knees were shaking, but no longer with nerves; the earlier heat had abruptly been replaced with the cold rage of furious incredulity. “I...apologize for my impertinence, but what...what exactly are you implying, sajang-nim?”

“Are you not romantically involved with Woozi?”

Cool brown eyes met older ones, even as Hoshi gracefully lowered himself back onto the cushion. “I can assure you that I am, in no form or way, in any sort of romantic relationship with Woozi-sunbaenim.” 

“Oh? Perhaps I am mistaken then." The older man sat back on his heels; perhaps it was but a trick of Soonyoung’s imagination, but he almost looked relieved. "So shall I take it that you aren't interested in pursuing Woozi romantically?”

“That,” Hoshi’s smile mirrored Seong-su’s own, a polite line carved into his face. “I believe, is a personal matter which would be inappropriate for me to discuss with anyone apart from Woozi-sunbaenim.”

A crack, finally, in Seong-su’s countenance appeared in the form of a crease in his forehead. “Understand that it will not go well for you to date Woozi. Your fame will not suddenly increase, nor your income. Rather, you will have increased your liabilities, especially if the press were to catch wind of such an affair. Woozi himself has no time to spare for idols of middling popularity, nor should he have to engage with you in any way.”

“Sajang-nim, forgive my interruption, but is my choice in relations really something that sajang-nim should be concerned about? Sajang-nim is aware, of course, that all idols, regardless of which company manages them, are strongly discouraged from pursuing romantic entanglements during their contract with the company. As for my affairs, surely they are matters for B.Net’s sajang-nim to worry about, not you. I do however wish to express my gratitude for expressing your concern for this middling-popularity idol.

“On top of that, Woozi-ssi is also one of the most professional men I have met; I have no doubt he will be able to make informed decisions with regards to his actions. Perhaps sajang-nim could try counselling him instead, though I am unsure as to how effective an action that might be.”

Seong-su was no longer discreetly outraged, if his clenched fists had anything to say about it. Good, Soonyoung thought - let him realize that it wouldn’t be easy to deal with obstinate, headstrong idols of ‘middling popularity’. "I can assure you, Hoshi-ssi, life can be _quite_ difficult for you unless you promise not to see Woozi romantically."

A threat, not even properly veiled in politeness. But Soonyoung was done, could no longer stay in this room without exploding into a flurry of very choice expletives and gestures unbecoming of an idol. “I'm sure it could, sajang-nim, if I were standing before a _less honorable_ man." 

He got to his feet. "Now, I apologize once more for my rudeness at having to depart so soon, but I have a schedule to attend at 5 pm.” A bow, lower than the one he had issued at the start of this farce of a meeting. “Please excuse me, sajang-nim, and have a nice day.”

Kihyun looked up from his phone, as Soonyoung speed-walked towards him. "So, what did Han-sajang-nim want to say to you?"

“Not right now, hyung." God, Soonyound had never been as glad as he was right then to have a strict schedule to adhere to. "Chop chop, we have to be at Lumiere Studio by 4 p.m., right?"

"Yah, you _promised_ me -" Whatever Kihyun saw of Soonyoung's expression must have been dreadful enough to cause the normally stubborn manager to pause, reassessing as they exited the restaurant and started walking over to where Kihyun had parked the company car. "It wasn't anything bad, was it?"

Somehow, telling Kihyun that the PMBL CEO had tried to ban him from ever dating one of their affiliated music producers seemed like too much mental effort at the moment. "Later, hyung, please?” 

"Damn it, I _knew_ I should have just barged in with you. 'Having a friendly word', my ass. Han Seong-su probably only knows how to be friendly with profit margins and investors." Kihyun mercifully lapsed into silence after that. It wasn't until Soonyoung had buckled himself into the front seat that the manager spoke again.

"Hey, whatever it is Han-sajang-nim said to you, don't worry about it, yeah? I'm only going to say this once, but B.Net values you greatly. That's why I give you so much shit all the time. That's how I care." Kihyun clapped him awkwardly on the shoulder. "So...uh, don't get seduced into being poached over, or something - whatever he promised, I bet good money he's not likely to follow through on it."

Kihyun's muddled pep talk was oddly comforting, and Soonyoung resisted throwing his arms around the shorter man in a hug. "Gotcha, hyung."

"Right. Well, good talk. God, we better hurry - the traffic on the Gangnam Beltway is going to be hell soon if we don't make it before rush hour."

\---

Years of professionalism and training meant the 5 p.m. schedule - a quick photoshoot for a sponsorship advertisement - went off without a hitch. If the staff noticed the slightly frenetic edge coloring Soonyoung's actions and voice, they were kind enough to not comment on it, directing him into the appropriate poses and snapping away.

Following the photoshoot was a quick hair touch-up appointment, which was nowhere as quick as it was purported to be. Fortunately, the lengthy time spent in the salon’s chair, usually so tedious, afforded Soonyoung the space he needed to calm down. By the time Kihyun dropped him back at the dorm, all the righteous agitation of earlier had petered out into thoughtful contemplation. 

If Soonyoung had harboured any remaining doubts about Jihoon’s sincerity, the impromptu meeting with PMBL’s CEO had definitely banished them. A man at the top of the company’s hierarchy would not waste his time with baseless rumors - if he said Woozi had prioritized Seungkwan before Vernon, it must have been so. On top of that, if Han-sajang-nim was concerned enough to deliberately arrange a meeting with a mere idol to verify what should have only been mere speculation, it was extremely likely Jihoon's feelings truly ran deep enough to lend some credence to that speculation.

If that were the case, then perhaps for once, Soonyoung should reciprocate those feelings properly. The idea should have freaked him out slightly, but quite honestly, he had been more than willing to do that for a while now. Jihoon’s visit to B.Net had already confirmed how Soonyoung felt about the producer - it’d just taken him all this time to own up to the fact. 

The only issue was how to go about doing it with the most minimal embarrassment possible.

By the time the elevator dinged its arrival, Soonyoung had vaguely put together the outlines of a plan. The next time they ran into each other, he would ask Jihoon if he was free to grab some coffee together. Kihyun would probably insist on coming along, but with some luck, he might be able to persuade the manager to supervise them from a distance. If Jihoon was busy...well, Soonyoung would have to check his upcoming schedules, but there should be spots of free time in between his activities. He’d just have to note them down so he could present Jihoon with options.

The next time they met, he resolved as he shuffled down the corridor to the dormitory, Soonyoung would sweep Jihoon off his feet. He wasn’t sure how he'd accomplish that yet, but that was alright - he was good at planning in advance. Whatever the situation, he’d take the initiative this time around. Jihoon had already done so much in this not-relationship; it was time Soonyoung stepped up to the plate, now that he was ready and willing to do so.

“Hey guys, I’m ba-”

 _How is it_ , thought Soonyoung vaguely as he processed the sight of Jihoon scrambling to his feet in the dorm’s living room, _that I’m always_ _one step behind this man_?

"You are…here," he managed to say, a tad weakly as his keys clattered onto the floor.

"Um. Dokyeom let me in. To wait for you." Jihoon worried at the sleeves of his worn-looking sweater, incongruously messy under what looked to be a haphazardly tugged on suit jacket, judging from the way the collar stuck upwards in the back. The producer didn't seem to care about his dishevelled appearance though, gaze fixed unerringly on Soonyoung. "You're uh. Your hair. It’s pink."

“Oh. Uh yeah, I had it dyed. Just now.” His hand automatically went up to comb through the light tresses, even as he struggled to form a smooth answer. God, where were all his words when he needed them? “Does it look bad or?..."

"It's great!" Jihoon hastily said - was he wringing his hands? "You look…really great. In pink. In all hair colors, really.”

The words were out of Soonyoung’s mouth before he even thought them through. “Even last year's neon red?”

“Yes. Well, that was a bit blinding.” Dark eyes widened, and Jihoon hurriedly added, “you still looked good then though!”

The dismay, so obvious in the lines of the producer’s face as he clapped his hands over his mouth, was enough to tip Soonyoung off: _Lee Jihoon was just as nervous as he was._

That realization was enough to dissolve the majority of Soonyoung’s nerves into breathless laughter, the idol sinking back against the wall as he wheezed little hiccups of mirth. From the sofa, Jihoon gaped at him, the earlier consternation turning into puzzled bemusement. Even so, his lips were twitching, clearly tempted to tug upwards into a responding smile to Soonyoung’s state. How had Soonyoung ever thought Jihoon expressionless?

Eventually, the idol collected himself enough to pick up his keys, deposit them properly in the basket by the doorway and plop down beside Jihoon on the couch. He charitably ignored the way the producer stiffened slightly at his proximity; Soonyoung was feeling a little wired himself.

“‘A bit blinding’. You really don't pull your punches, huh?”

“Apparently not.” From the corner of his eye, Soonyoung could see Jihoon peeking at him through his bangs. “I’ve been told I could do with learning some tact.”

“Hmmm. Maybe Seungcheol-hyung can help with that.”

A dry snort. “I think Seungcheol would prefer not to deal with any of my opinions for a while.”

"Well, they aren't always wrong though. You _were_ right on the money about Vernon."

Woozi sighed, deep and low. "I wish I hadn't been, to be honest. He really isn’t all that bad a person, just...culturally ignorant.”

“Jun told me he was sent back to the U.S. with barely any repercussions.”

“That’s what you heard?” At Soonyoung’s nod, Woozi shrugged. “I wouldn’t say he didn’t face any repercussions, but that’s best kept P and C. Company stuff and all that. It was a headache sorting everything out - had to cash in a few favors - but what’s done is done. I did hear that he tried to contact Seungkwan before his flight so he could apologize to him, but I don’t think he succeeded."

 _Kwannie probably flung his phone across the room in fright_ , thought Soonyoung. Out loud, he said, “I’d be slightly more sympathetic, but I'm still not feeling particularly charitable towards him at the moment."

"Fair enough.” 

That exchange was followed by silence. Too much in fact, as Soonyoung looked around, nose wrinkling. The dorm was unusually quiet, given the rambunctiousness of its usual occupants. From what he recalled, only Wonwoo had a recording session scheduled that night, and the thought of all of his labelmates being sequestered as silently as church mice in their individual bedrooms, especially when Jihoon was sitting in their living room, was a ludicrous one. 

“Okay, this is weird. Yah,” he called out, “Are you guys eavesdropping or something?”

“Oh, Dokyeom took your dorm-mates out earlier. Said something about dinner and not to expect them back for a good few hours.”

Bless Seokmin and his ability to read a situation. Soonyoung owed him a hug when he got back. “He’s been in a ridiculously good mood lately. Wonder why that is.”

Jihoon hummed. “Maybe it’s because a certain producer stopped being a cock-block between him and the producer’s friend. I still owe you thanks for that, by the way.” 

“For cussing you out? Please, I was a downright asshole - if anything, _I_ should be apologizing for that mess. And…honestly, if anyone owes anyone thanks, it’s all of us for what you did for Seungkwan.” Soonyoung sobered up at that, sitting up on the sofa so abruptly that it caused the producer to slide towards him with a quiet yelp. “Seungkwan essentially got off with a minor slap on the wrist - sajang-nim put him on an extended break from his activities for a couple of weeks to reflect on his mistakes, but that won’t harm his career. There’s been zero mention of the whole incident on any online portal or paparazzi sites - we've been checking, and zilch has turned up.”

He turned to face the producer. “Junhui said that it’s all due to you; I don't think we can thank you enough for that.”

Jihoon’s thigh was distractingly warm where it was pressed against Soonyoung’s, but by sheer will, he didn’t allow it to stop him from pressing his hands on his knees and lowering his head to meet them. Almost immediately, hands were on his shoulders, pushing him back into his earlier sitting position. 

“Please don’t - you don’t have to-” Jihoon tightened his surprisingly strong grip on Soonyoung’s shoulders to prevent him from bowing again. “God, I never meant for you to find out. How much did Junhui tell you? I should have made him promise to keep it hushed before he left.”

“Don’t blame him - it’s really not his fault. I basically pressured him to spill everything; told him I wouldn’t be able to focus on the album if he didn’t tell me. Because…” _You went to the police station on my behalf_ , his brain helpfully suggested. “I just had to know,” he finished lamely. 

Thankfully, Jihoon didn’t seem to notice how weak his reason was.“Your company doesn't need to thank me - I didn’t do it for B.Net. Or for Seungkwan.” The ghost of a smile lingered around his mouth, a wistful twist even as his hands dropped back into his lap. “Not that I don't respect either, but…Soonyoung, I told you in my letter that I wouldn’t inconvenience you with my feelings. If this, any of this, is making you uncomfortable, please say so immediately. I swear I'll stop."

"Why would it make me uncomfortable?”

“Because… because I did it, all of it, for _you_. Because you were so distraught, and I couldn't have that, not when I could make it right somehow.” Jihoon looked down at his hands, then back up at Soonyoung, words still spilling out of him in a quietly honest confession. “It seems almost like some kind of twisted blessing in disguise, that I could finally do something that’d make you happy just this once, instead of pissing you off to the point of hatred. And I thought...I thought... _god_ , I don’t know what I thought. All I knew was Seungkwan being in trouble like that meant you'd be in trouble. So I did what I could. I was thinking of myself, and how...how _I_ needed you to be alright. So Seungkwan, B.Net, none of you owe me anything, not when I did it for my own selfish reasons." 

Dark eyes scanned Soonyoung's expression, apprehensive. "Was that too much? Damn it, this is why I don't talk much - I run my damned mouth off too easily. I swear, I didn't mean -"

Soonyoung kissed him.

It was an impulsive decision, one he hadn't actually thought through fully before executing it. But Soonyoung, for all his caution and care as a working idol, was a big believer in gut instinct. And it was all too easy to give in to the need to stem the flow of self-disparagement streaming out of Jihoon’s mouth with something Soonyoung had been wanting to do for a while now.

Jihoon's lips were soft, lax with surprise. A heartbeat, two, then the tension abruptly snapped and he sighed into the contact, relaxing enough for Soonyoung's hand to curve properly around his neck and draw him closer.

Breathless and bewildered was a good look on Jihoon, his flush a dark red that warmed his cheeks down to where the frayed sweater collar met his neck when they eventually separated. "Um, I. Uh. That is...thanks? You didn't have to - I mean, you - "

The second kiss was much more pleasurable than the first, Jihoon veritably melting against Soonyoung, his halting words translated into gasps that were readily swallowed by the idol as he angled his lips to seal them against the producer's mouth.

"The first kiss was to thank you," he explained, once he had breath enough to speak again. "The second is to declare my own intentions, because I cannot be assed to go off and write a whole response letter for you when I could do this instead."

"You -"

"I am in love with you too, Lee Jihoon." His voice, Soonyoung was proud to note, didn't falter, nor did it shake. Yet his heart fluttered, pounding hard as if applauding the truth in the words spoken aloud. Yī wǎng qíng shēn indeed. "This really isn’t the best timing to say so, I know, but -"

Jihoon's lips were on his again, an almost desperate pressure as the smaller man practically climbed into his lap, his legs tangling with Soonyoung's own in his impatience. Arms encircled the idol in a clasp so tight, it almost felt that his heartbeat, racing as it was, was trying to sync with Jihoon's own through the layers of fabric.

 _I love you_ , he thinks he hears Jihoon mumble when they parted for air, _so goddamn much_. But he had barely time to question the veracity of his ears before Jihoon was kissing him once more, as if a man starving for something only Soonyoung could provide. And Soonyoung was all too happy to oblige. 

"Sajang-nim sent me an urgent email calling me to his office earlier," Jihoon said much later when both of them were satiated, head resting against Soonyoung's shoulder as he idly rubbed circles into Soonyoung's palm which he had pulled into his lap. “Intimated that I should see him at my earliest convenience. Meaning immediately.”

Displeasure curdled in Soonyoung’s stomach just recalling his own unpleasant encounter with Han-sajang-nim. “He did, huh?”

"Yeah. To say I was surprised would be an understatement - I don’t think I’ve met with him personally all year, save during company-wide meetings. It was...well, ‘magnificently awkward’ is probably the best way to put it. Sajang-nim spent a good fifteen minutes vehemently reminding me multiple times that it was highly discouraged to date an idol, any idol, as the repercussions were 'highly undesirable' and could 'jeopardize the reputation of PMBL'.” Jihoon’s eyebrows clearly indicated what he thought about his CEO’s warnings. “Definitely wasn’t the kind of meeting I expected to be in, ever. But sajang-nim dropped enough information for me to figure out that, at some point during that afternoon, you must have run into him, prompting sajang-nim’s need to hold this meeting with me.”

"What I couldn't immediately understand though, was why sajang-nim would need to meet _me_ after ostensibly talking to you. It just didn't make sense, no matter how hard I thought about it."

Jihoon lifted his head to look at Soonyoung then, his grin wide and boyish, something triumphant around its edges. "It only struck me while I was trying to distract myself with new beats in the studio. You see, you’ve been nothing but upfront when it comes to your feelings, especially towards me. So, if you still hated me like you used to, or were just tolerating me like I'd feared, you'd have straight-up told sajang-nim that there was no chance in hell we'd ever date. Probably a lot more politely than that time you confronted me, but with the same sentiment."

"That...is admittedly true."

“For sajang-nim to feel worried enough to call me in for a private meeting, you must have said something that implied you might not be adverse to a relationship with me. It...it gave me _hope_. So much that I didn't know what to do except hurry over here with exactly zero plan in mind. I don’t know; I just...I _had_ to see you. I can’t even explain why, I just." Jihoon chuckled wryly. "Look at me - big-shot song writer, and I can’t even articulate how much you make me feel. You...you override all my logic and rationale, Kwon Soonyoung, and I love you so, _so_ much."

Soonyoung didn't bother resisting the urge to press an affectionate peck on Jihoon's cheek at that admission. “While I’d love for you to keep on telling me these things, I have to say I'm surprised you could still like me, even after, well, everything. I was honestly such a little shit at the start."

"There's nothing little about you - you're definitely a big shit." Jihoon chuckled while dodging Soonyoung's half-hearted swipe, catching his hand to clasp between both of his instead. "But I meant what I said before: it’s somehow impossible not to love you. Even before we met in person, I thought you were one of the most good-looking idols of this generation. Then I overheard one of your performances when I visited Seungcheol on-set, and it sounded so good, I got curious and looked you up online. And...well. I thought it would be a passing crush, but then Chan kept playing your music and watching your interviews, and it felt a bit as if I was going crazy - you seemed to be _everywhere_. 

Jihoon squeezed Soonyoung’s hand. “You drove me so crazy, I wrote actual lyrics about how I felt to try and get it out of my system. Seungcheol has _sung_ songs I wrote about you. You know ‘Adore U’?"

"Who doesn’t? That song achieved a PAK - wait.” Soonyoung sat up, disbelieving. “That was about _me_?"

"Yeah. Actually, so was NU'EST's 'Love Me'."

“...So, you’re essentially saying your crush on me won PMBL idols multiple awards. This seems somewhat unfair.”

Jihoon shrugged. “That's why Seungcheol gives me so much shit over my crush on you; he was the only one who knew the extent of my feelings. As much as I liked you though, I was convinced that your involvement in your music was media play - you were already a talented performer, it seemed cheap for your company to try to play up something I thought was falsely attributed to you. But then we kind of...well, 'met' is too nice a way to put it, I guess. And I realized how wrong I was. Even then, when you clearly disliked me, you were passionate, creative, fiercely loyal to your friends, driven, and so ridiculously charismatic - it’d be weirder for me to _not_ be further drawn to you. You know how the rest goes.” 

Soonyoung digested all this information, idly running his thumb over Jihoon’s knuckles. “...You could have just talked to me nicely, you know.”

“Huh?”

“In your letter, you said you thought I’d be too professional to risk a relationship with you. Which, fair assumption, if inaccurate. But I’d like to think I have a pretty approachable image - why didn’t you just try to befriend me first or something?”

“What, and put myself in close proximity with you? I was trying to smother my crush on you, not feed it. I thought it'd eventually die off if I didn't indulge it, but, as you know, that was a colossal failure.” Jihoon scrunched up his nose. “I might have, maybe, eventually been goaded into approaching you if not for that shitty first impression I made on you at the Seoul Gayo Daesang. I’m pretty sure my heart stopped for a good minute when you came out of that toilet stall to hear me insulting your music. I was so horrified I think I blanked for a good few minutes.”

“That _was_ mean of you,” Soonyoung agreed, even as he squeezed Jihoon’s hands consolingly. “I really admire your music production, so it was a pretty hard blow to hear that kind of opinion coming from you, especially when you thought I wasn't there.”

"I'm still sorry about that." Jihoon brushed his lips over the tops of Soonyoung's knuckles. "I genuinely only said it to stop Seungcheol from teasing me further. Trust me - I felt like an absolute turd for ages following that day."

"As you should. You never even apologized for it."

A remorseful groan. "I know; I am that terrible combination of prideful and socially awkward, amped up to a thousand when I get flustered around someone. Honestly, are you sure you actually like me? Love is not the same as gratitude, you know."

"Yeesh, I'm an idol, not dumb. If mere gratitude merits that epic make-out session earlier, I would be inundated in a crap ton of scandals by now." Soonyoung sobered at that. "Jihoon-ah, are you sure you want to date _me_ though? Being a relationship with me is going to be hard. I _am_ an active idol, and even if I'm not, like, massively famous, it's still going to be a lot of secret trysts and not much affection in public."

"Well, thank God for that - I'd probably combust from Hoshi-level PDA." 

“Be serious.” Soonyoung whined, trying hard to keep his face stern as Jihoon pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. “Not to mention, Han-sajang-nim maybe, I think, threatened to...do things.”

Jihoon reached up to ruffle Soonyoung's hair. "Don’t worry about sajang-nim; that’s for me to handle. I know what I'm getting into, dating you - I _do_ work in this industry too. But I have a slight edge in that I have contacts, less to lose as a producer, and know how the idol life is like; in fact, I might be one of the safest people you could date quietly. Even if I didn't have that edge though, I'd still think it worth the risk, for me at least. I want to give this relationship a try, if you're willing. Plus," Jihoon's whisper tickled Soonyoung's ear, "my personal studio is _very_ private."

"Yah, you lecher!" But Soonyoung was laughing too, helpless spurts of amusement as he buried his face in the crook of Jihoon's neck. 

Perhaps, he mused, he should send PMBL’s CEO a thank-you bouquet. A bunch of roses, perhaps? Or maybe he could look up what kinds of flowers meant "I'm about to date the hell out of the person you explicitly told me not to, haha" and have it express-delivered. 

Ah well, he could work that out later. For now, he had a contented Jihoon sneaking sly kisses along his collar bone, and an empty apartment. And Soonyoung was intent on making the privacy count.

\---

"Hey, so," Wonwoo eyeballed Soonyoung when the latter entered the kitchen later that night. "I'm really glad you and Woozi are going to give the relationship thing a go, but if I hear suspicious bumps in the night, I'm calling Dispatch first thing the next morning."

Then he ambled away, ignoring the rude gesture Soonyoung raised in his direction.

Seokmin was more discreet about it. "Are you happy, hyung?"

Soonyoung thought about how Woozi had kissed him again before he left, all shy smiles as he promised to text him the minute he got to the studio. Thought of the chat thread that was already fifty messages long, starting only five minutes after Jihoon's departure. Thought about the goodnight selfie Jihoon had sent just ten minutes ago in reply to Soonyoung's own photo. "Very, Minnie."

Seokmin leant over to poke the corner of the smile that Soonyoung wasn’t even aware was on his face. "Even though you used to hate him?"

"Yeah, well, that’s what happens when terrible communication happens between two people. You of all people should know how it is.”

“Ohhh, I definitely do, considering it was Woozi’s terrible communication skills that got everything messed up between Cheol and me.” Seokmin wrinkled his nose. “Don’t worry, I’ve already forgiven him...mostly. But it’s not my feelings that matter here. Hyung, do you love him?”

Soonyoung met Seokmin’s searching look with his own open one, putting down his coffee mug to reach over and squeeze the other idol’s hands in his. “What do you think, Minnie-ah?”

"I think I’d like to hear it in actual words, if only so I know that the money I sacrificed to buy the dongsaengs dinner was worth it.”

The words come out in a tone so soft, Soonyoung could hardly believe it was himself at first. “I do. God, I really _do_ love him. How weird is that, right?”

“It’s not weird at all, hyung.” Seokmin’s grin was sunshine-warm. “And I’m happy for you too. Who'd have thought though - Woozi-hyung, of all people. I thought it’d take a miracle for you two to ever get along, and suddenly bam! You guys are in a relationship. Talk about plot twists." Seokmin scrunched up his face. “But, uh, hyung, if you two wanna...get it on, could you guys do it at his place? Because our walls are pretty thin - you know how they are, right? And please, _please_ don't do it on my bed. I know it’s slow to climb into your bunk and it might kill the mood, but for my sake -"

" _Yah, stop it_."

Mingyu thankfully did not mention anything about walls, sex or eavesdropping; he had simply clapped Soonyoung on the shoulder, congratulated him and gone right back to watching anime on his phone. Seungkwan, in contrast, had given Soonyoung a tremulous smile - one of the rare ones these days - then leaned over to pull him into a tight hug. The older man reciprocated whole-heartedly, understanding that the wordless thanks was for Jihoon, and everything he had done for Seungkwan.

Jeonghan’s acceptance of the news was subtle, just a brief widening of eyes followed by a slow smile as he reached over to squeeze Soonyoung’s wrist, remarking it was about time Soonyoung found something else to fixate on beside his career. Kihyun’s reaction to the news was anything but, disapproval radiating from every pore when Soonyoung sheepishly mentioned it to him, quickly adding that he didn’t want his manager to be blindsided should any gossip surface online. Still, a list of good places to date in secret tucked in with his kimbap box the following day, carefully printed in the manager's neat handwriting, was enough to cause a surge of fondness to rush through Soonyoung.

(He made a note to try Hong Seokcheon's latest restaurant, which Kihyun had added a star beside, and pulled a face at the brief reminder penciled in at the bottom to 'use condoms if needed'.)

Then, there was Hyunwoo-sajangnim. 

In their meeting, the B.Net CEO had steepled his fingers, face calmly placid as always behind his desk. "We didn't discuss a dating clause in your contract, did we, Hoshi?"

"No, sajang-nim." Soonyoung tried not to squirm in his seat, hands folded in his lap. It had never been easy to grasp what Hyunwoo's feelings on an issue were; it was no easier this time around. Briefly, he regretted telling Kihyun - he should have known it would have gone straight to the CEO himself. "But I decided to let Kihyun-hyung know because I believe in full disclosure, for both my career and your decision-making. I promise we will definitely keep it as hidden as possible, and not let it leak to the media. We will be careful."

“Hmm.” The office lapsed into a brief silence, Hyunwoo tapping the tip of his pen against the table. When he next spoke, his tone was unreadably mild. “And if I were to tell you to break up with Lee Jihoon, would you do it?”

Soonyoung’s fingers dug crescent-shaped indents into his palms. “I...cannot promise I would do that, sajang-nim. I would take it into advisement though.”

“Do you know, Soonyoung, that 'take into advisement' has been around even since before I was an idol? It's a handy phrase to use when you have every intention of willfully ignoring orders.” Hyunwoo chuckled, shaking his head. "As one of the first idols signed to this company, you've asked for a record number of concessions, working under us. I don’t recall any of the others having quite as many stipulations as you do."

"I know.” Soonyoung kept his back straight, not allowing his eye contact with Hyunwoo to break as he spoke. “And I am extremely grateful for all the autonomy sajang-nim has provided in my contract. It is my wish to keep working under your care, and to be recognized as a top-tier idol under the B.Net name."

"Ah. In that case, I'll look forward to your renewal at the end of this year, with no additional amendments.” Hyunwoo waited for Soonyoung’s fervent nod, before he continued, “As for your relationship, we will be behind you if the media breaks it to the public. But spare an old man a headache, Hoshi, and keep it as quiet as you can, alright?"

Soonyoung released a breath he wasn't aware of holding, and dropped into a low bow. "Yes, sajang-nim! I will work hard. Uh, not just in hiding the dating thing, but also in my career."

"Good, good. I always knew you were my favorite for a reason." Hyunwoo's eyes creased in amusement. "Well, run off to your schedule then - I don't need Kihyun bursting in here accusing me of delaying your activities and yelling about the importance of punctuality."

And that was that.

\---

“Hey, remember you said that you wrote lyrics about me when you were crushing on me? Well, _I_ wrote lyrics too, except I did it when I was still furious with you.”

“Oh, really now?” Jihoon leaned in to kiss Soonyoung’s temple. The idol hummed, sending off a quick text confirming his next schedule to his manager before curling closer to his boyfriend on the tiny sofa. Universe Factory, as Jihoon had dubbed the personal studio installed in his apartment, was presently washed in dim purple-blue hues, which the producer claimed boosted his creative process. Soonyoung just thought they made it a lot harder to see the various keyboards, but he had long learned not to pick fights he couldn't win, especially when there were much more agreeable things to do.

Not that accurately using keyboards was all that important at the moment, seeing as Soonyoung had successfully persuaded his boyfriend ( _boyfriend_ , his mind trilled) to briefly stop working in favor of cuddling on the couch.

Theirs was a relationship that was still settling into a steady rhythm, made doubly complicated by both men's working schedules. When Jihoon was free, Soonyoung was juggling promotional appearances, stage performances or both. When Soonyoung finally freed up some time in his day, Jihoon was in meetings with other idols over their songs, or running booked recording sessions.

Still, it made the hours they spent together all the more precious. They had also learnt to encroach a little into each other's working time when it was safe to do so - it wasn't unusual to spy a small figure, bundled in one of Soonyoung's hoodies, tucked in the corner of B.Net's dance studio when Soonyoung was practising choreography on his own. And sometimes, Soonyoung would pack whatever food his diet called for, and bring it over to Jihoon's personal studio to eat while the producer experimented with creating beats.

And if the producer, more often than not, fell victim to Soonyoung's entreaties to come cuddle with him during this moments, well, all the better for Soonyoung, as far as he was concerned. 'A hug monster' Jihoon had grumbled once half-heartedly, even as he allowed Soonyoung to tuck himself closer to him.

“Yup." Soonyoung kept his tone purposefully light. "Something about cutting toxic people out of your life, setting them on fire metaphorically, trampling on them like dirt beneath your shoe - y’know, the works. I was _greatly_ inspired by my fervent emotions.”

“Hm.”

“It’s got a strong EDM beat too; practically the rhythmic counterpart to ‘Hurricane’. Which was the point, since it was supposed to be a ‘fuck you’ message to you. Personally, what I have so far is really catchy; I’m thinking of including it in my next album. Maybe I'll even make it the lead single.”

“Well, I suppose there’s no helping it then - I have to produce this song.”

“No can do.” Soonyoung booped Jihoon's nose with a finger, giggling. “Jun’s already working on it. We've got most of the instrumental accompaniment down already.”

“You let Junhui produce a song you wrote about me?” 

“ _You_ let Seungcheol sing a song you wrote about me.” The collar of Soonyoung’s oversized sweater dropped off one shoulder as he shrugged. “Fair’s fair.”

“Oh c’mon, are you still hung up on ‘Adore U’?”

“Mmmm, yeah.” It was a pleasant struggle to keep his face straight, even as Jihoon traced nonsensical designs on the newly exposed skin of his collarbone. “Oh, stop it with the hangdog face - you’re already producing three other tracks on that album, one of which the Internet is apparently going wild over. What more do you want?”

“A monopoly on the production of all the songs about me, obviously.”

“Yah, don’t be ridiculous.” 

“I can’t help it; something about you makes me feel particularly selfish.” Fingers trace down Soonyoung’s cheeks to curl under his chin, tipping it down to meet Jihoon’s laughing eyes. “Take responsibility properly, won’t you?”

And Soonyoung was all too willing to lean over to meet those familiar lips with his own smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Annnnnd it's done! *throws confetti* At 50k+ words, this officially clocks in as the longest fic I've ever written; I'm still kind of awed that I actually finished writing it, to be honest. For a crack idea yelled about on Messenger, this grew quite...monumentally.
> 
> A few quick notes: 
> 
> \- The character compendium:  
> B.Net: Bennet  
> Soonyoung - Elizabeth Bennet  
> Seokmin - Jane Bennet  
> Wonwoo -Mary Bennet  
> Seungkwan - Lydia Bennet  
> Mingyu - Catherine/Kitty Bennet  
> Hyunwoo - Mr. Bennet  
> Kihyun - Mrs. Bennet (though there are moments when he takes on Mr. Bennet's role as well)  
> Junhui - Mr./Mrs Gardiner
> 
> PMBL: Pemberley  
> Jihoon - Fitzwilliam Darcy  
> Seungcheol - Charles Bingley  
> Vernon - George Wickham  
> Chan - Georgiana Darcy  
> PMBL's CEO (Seong-su) - Catherine de Bourgh  
> Minghao - Colonel Fitzwilliam  
> Yoongi - Mrs. Reynolds
> 
> Starfield: a play on Starship + Netherfield  
> Joshua - Mr. Collins  
> Jeonghan - Charlotte Lucas
> 
> \- Minghao was initially supposed to be Caroline Bingley (some of his character background hints at this), but adapting him into that role didn't quite fit the plot I had in mind, and I needed Colonel Fitzwilliam as a catalyst more. 
> 
> \- One of the ideas bounced around for Vernon/Seungkwan's scandal was getting stuck at the airport immigration without passports while trying to drunk-fly to Vegas (or some place) to get married. No, seriously. 
> 
> \- Initially, all the B.Net talent cast were going to be a single k-pop group. I eventually switched this to individual careers for easier adapting.
> 
> \- The alternative candidate for Mr. Darcy was Wonwoo, who was also briefly considered for Elizabeth. Jeonghan was briefly up for Elizabeth as well, while Seungcheol was considered for Jane.
> 
> \- Given how this adaptation played out, Mingyu and Wonwoo got a lot more screentime than I thought they'd get. Rise, Marywoo!
> 
> \- While there are a number of sly easter eggs buried in this, all plot-based events that occur in this fic are fictional. Please do not repost my work elsewhere as well. (This is my first time dabbling in k-pop fanfiction and I figured it's better to be safe than sorry).
> 
> If you've read this far, thank you for taking the time to read this entire fic! I hope it has been as fun to read as it has been writing/planning it out. Kudos and constructive feedback, as usual, are very much appreciated. Merry Christmas, everyone!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! ╰(*´︶`*)╯♡ Kudos and comments are very much appreciated, as are boba drinks.
> 
> I'm on [tumblr](https://www.hweiro.tumblr.com/) here!


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